


Look Alike

by lucifersfavoritechild



Series: "It's the Perfect Story" Asides/Aus/One-Shots [3]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, Supernatural
Genre: AU, Angels need to learn to stay out of people's dreams, Apocalypse, Crossover, Episode: s04e19 Jump the Shark, F/M, Fanfiction of Fanfiction, I Need Another Story, It's the Perfect Story, PJO AU, TheBrighestNight, Tori is done with this shit, it's rude, spn au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-01
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2018-09-13 10:22:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9119404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucifersfavoritechild/pseuds/lucifersfavoritechild
Summary: Tori meets a look-alike of Luke, and because the gods can't tell whether or not they hate her, it gets complicated.





	1. ...OK, it's stalking.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TheBrightestNight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBrightestNight/gifts).
  * Inspired by [I Need Another Story](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7094068) by [TheBrightestNight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBrightestNight/pseuds/TheBrightestNight). 



> This is a fanfic of fanfic, those fanfics being 'It's the Perfect Story' and 'I Need Another Story' by TheBrightestNight.

When Tori first saw him, she thought Luke had come back.

In hindsight, that was a bit of a stretch. But she’d seen stranger things. And he looked just like him. So much so that she instantly stopped in the middle of the street just to stare at him.

The man was tall and lanky with dark clothes pulled over unmarked skin. His eyes were blue, and his hair was sandy blonde. Looking at him then, Tori could believe that Luke was back, that he had returned to her and they could be together again.

Once she came back to her senses, she realized how wrong she was. The man was too tall, his hair and eyes too dark, his skin too pale, and he wasn’t as muscular as Luke had been. It was a nice thought, but this was someone else. So there was really no reason for Tori to follow him. Not that that was going to stop her.

 _It’s not stalking. It’s just curiosity._ The excuse didn’t even fool her, but she didn’t care as long as the man stayed in sight. Unfortunately, after 20 minutes of walking, they made it to his house. The man went inside, forcing Tori to walk past it. Trying not to be too obvious, she took note of where they were, memorizing the house’s address before leaving. She thought of staying for a while longer, but Dan’s play had ended over an hour ago, and it would be suspicious if she didn’t get back soon.

Tori went back to Camp, having written down the address as soon as she was out of sight of the house. It was almost time for dinner, but not quite yet. Everybody should be in their classes or activities for another half-hour. Thinking quickly, Tori ran to the Athena cabin, tearing apart Annabeth’s cot to find her hat. She finally found it hidden in a box under the bed and took it, leaving the cabin just before classes let out.

She stayed there the rest of the day, even pretending to go to sleep once dinner was over. Only once she was sure her siblings were all asleep did she leave, taking her bow and sword for extra protection. Wearing the cap, she made her way back to the man’s house. She found a window that looked in on his room and stayed perched on a tree branch outside of it for over an hour, watching him work on his computer. He never spoke and rarely got up, but he was like a drug. The small frown he got when he didn’t understand something, the way he tapped his fingers when he was annoyed, those strong hands and long legs - all of it was so like Luke that Tori was sure she wouldn’t mind staring at him forever.

Not long after she arrived, she was sure that the man - Adam, she read off one of his school papers - knew she was there. He glanced anxiously at the window a few times before getting up and walking over to it. He pushed the window open, leaning out and looking around. Tori was perfectly still, not even breathing, and ready to run if she had to. She breathed a sigh of relief when he just closed the window, muttering something to himself about not getting enough sleep. He went to bed after that, and Tori left because she wasn’t creepy enough to watch him sleep (yet).

* * *

The next day was tense. Tori barely talked to anyone, and snapped at everyone who tried to talk to her for more than ten seconds. She wasn’t _trying_ to be mean, but talking got in the way of thinking up plans to see Adam again, and that was unacceptable.

 _Adam_. Tori contemplated the name. It was nice enough, she supposed. It hurt to remember that for all that he looked like Luke, he wasn’t, but she could live with it as long as she didn’t have to say it.

Tori returned the invisibility cap to its hiding place without anyone knowing. She thought of just asking Annabeth if she could borrow it in the future, but then if she said no and Tori took it anyway, she’d immediately know it was her. Instead she left dinner early to get it back, hiding it in a drawer before pretending to go to sleep. When she was sure no one would see her, she left.

She was almost to the camp border when someone stopped her. She cursed internally, standing perfectly still as Will walked around. “Tori, I know you’re there. I can smell your perfume, and your bed is empty.”

“ _Gods Dammit_ ,” Tori said, pulling off the cap so that Will could see her.

Will crossed his arms and looked at her expectantly. “What are you doing?”

She huffed. “First of all, it’s not perfume, it’s fragrance mist.”

Will rolled his eyes. “Fine. Now what are you doing?”

“Being older than you, now go back to bed.” She turned around to leave, but Will grabbed her arm.

“Nice try. Want to give me an actual answer?”

Tori looked at him in annoyance. “I’m an adult. If I want to leave, I can. Now _let go_.” Tori shook her arm to force him away, but he just gripped her tighter. It would be easy for her to force him to let go, but only if she wanted to risk hurting him.

Tori was starting to get desperate. Adam would probably be going to sleep sometime around midnight. It was almost half-past ten now, meaning even if she magically teleported there right now (it wouldn’t be the weirdest thing to happen to her), she wouldn’t even be able to see him for two hours. As it was, it would probably take her half an hour to get there. “For fuck’s sake Will, would you just _get off_.” She finally managed to push him off her entirely, backing away before he could get her again.

Will stared at her defiantly before wilting. “Tori, please. I just...I just don’t want to lose any more siblings.”

Tori’s heart lurched. She sighed sadly, pulling her brother to her to give him a hug. “Will, I swear on the River Styx that I’ll be back before tomorrow morning. Hell, I’ll probably be back in the next two hours. You don’t have to worry about losing me.”

Will smiled, happy to know she’d be back, before frowning again. “But where are you going?”

Tori shifted uncomfortably. Reluctantly, she told him, “I’m going to see someone.” It wasn’t _technically_ a lie, even if it wasn’t the whole truth.

Will’s eyebrows shot up so far they were practically in his hair. “Someone like a _guy_ someone?”

Tori blushed. “Shut up and go to bed.” Will smirked, turning around to head back to the Apollo cabin. “And don’t tell anyone about this either, or else I’ll tell Nico...something. Something very embarrassing about you that you’ll never live down.”

“I’m terrified,” Will quipped, giving his sister a small smile. He sobered and added, “Be careful Victoria,” before leaving.  

Tori stared after him before shaking herself. She was tempted to stay at camp and go to sleep, safe in the knowledge that her family would protect her from harm. She even walked a few steps back to the cabin before remembering Adam’s face. If she didn’t think about it too much, she could easily fool herself into thinking it was Luke. Her mind made up, Tori left the camp without looking back.

* * *

Tori soon settled into a pattern of get up, spend the day at camp, sneak off to look at (not stalk, definitely not stalk) Adam for an hour or two, come back and sleep. Will tried to pester her for more information about her “boyfriend”, but she refused to talk, and he gave up after a couple of days.

It was exactly two weeks after Tori had first seen Adam that things changed. She sat perched in her tree, wishing the branch was thicker so that it wouldn’t hurt her butt as much. She usually didn’t mind it so much, but Adam had yet to show up to his room, and with nothing else to think about, it was quickly becoming irritating. She was almost ready to leave when she saw someone staring at the house from across the street.

Tori frowned, angling for a better look. Altogether, the man was fairly nondescript. Normally she wouldn’t have paid him any attention, except he didn’t leave. Tori stared at him, temporarily distracted from her booty problems. The man left eventually, but as he did, Tori could have sworn that he looked right at her.

* * *

Tori left early the next night, before it was even ten. She wasn’t sure no one had noticed, but she couldn’t help the feeling that something bad was going to happen if she didn’t go quickly.

Adam wasn’t in his room when she got there. In and of itself, that wasn’t unusual. He was probably just in the bathroom, or else the kitchen or living room, in which case she’d have to wait for him to go upstairs. But combined with the man she saw yesterday and the feeling she had earlier, she didn’t want to risk it. Praying to any gods that might still listen to her (so not many), Tori picked the front door lock, thankful that Luke had taught her how to do it back when they were in the ‘trying to impress each other so the other won’t leave’ stage of dating.

Tori moved quietly through the house, thankful for Annabeth’s cap. She almost gave up after five minutes when she heard muffled screaming from below. Running now, she found the basement and wrenched the door open. What she found stopped her in her tracks.

Two people, Adam and who she assumed was his mother were tied to tables in the basement. Around them stood the man from yesterday along with an older woman. Both of them were holding what looked like carving knifes. The woman had some blood on her hand and around her mouth. Tori realized with a start that she was identical to Adam’s mother, who was unconscious. A good thing too, since it looked like the monster had started peeling the skin from her abdomen.

At some point, the cap must have been knocked off her head, because Adam could clearly see her. He looked at her with eyes wide in fear and screamed around his gag, thrashing against the restraints. Without thinking, Tori ran to him, but the monsters were faster. Tori unsheathed her dagger and started slashing at them. They were strong, and nearly managed to force her to the ground twice. But Tori was more skilled and had plenty of practice killing monsters, and she defeated them after what felt like eternity, but was closer to two minutes.

Tori fell to the floor, her energy drained. She heaved in several breaths before noticing Adam struggling against his bonds again. Forcing herself to stand up, she lumbered over to him, pulling the gag out of his mouth and quickly used her dagger to cut the rope.

“Thank you,” Adam said, tears streaking down his face. “ _Thank you_.”

Tori nodded weakly, too tired to even care about hearing Adam’s voice. She handed him the dagger to free his mom as she sat down and tried to calm herself down. Apollo had healed her chronic pain, but sometimes, after fights, she could swear it had never left. Nico and Will insisted that it was all in her head, but that didn’t exactly help when your head was a part of you.

Once she felt better, she stood up to survey the damage. Adam was fine for the most part, though his wrists were rubbed raw. But his mother had lost a lot of blood and some of her flesh had been gouged out. Tori checked her temperature, cursing when she felt how cold she was.

Adam stared at Tori as she examined the woman, growing frantic at her distressed look. Frantically, he said, “We have to get her to a hospital!” He turned to go upstairs, but Tori grabbed his arm to stop him. “We can’t do that.”

Luke - _Adam_ , she corrected herself, _Adam_ \- stared at her. “What? Why not?”

Tori knew she didn’t have the time to explain everything, so instead she told him, “Just wait here, I know someone who can help.” Tori felt kinda bad about leaving him alone, but she was pretty sure if she had to look at him anymore, she would burst into tears thinking about Luke.

She went into the kitchen and pulled her pendant out from her shirt. It was a bronze sun with the word Απόλλων carved into the back. Taking out a clean dagger, Tori nicked her finger and wiped the blood onto the carving. She quickly said a prayer to her father in Greek. She turned around when she finished, coming face to face with Apollo.

The god smiled at Tori. “Hey kiddo! I’m guessing you need help with something?”

Not knowing what to say, Tori just took her dad by the arm and pulled him downstairs. The first thing he saw was Adam. He looked at Tori with raised eyebrows, but she ignored him in favor of the woman. “Can you help her?”

Apollo gave Tori a look that said ‘we are going to talk about this later’ before smiling. “Of course I can!” He laid his hand on the woman’s abdomen. His hand glowed yellow. Adam watched in stunned silence as his mother’s skin and flesh regrew, knitting itself back together.

Apollo turned to look at them with his ‘I’m so awesome’ face. It dampened a bit when Adam stumbled forward in shock. Tori caught him just before he fell down. Adam didn’t notice. “Wha-what?”

Tori pulled Adam up so that he was standing. “Okay, I’m gonna take you upstairs. Dad, if you can make sure she’s okay, I’d really appreciate it.”

Apollo nodded. “You got it, kiddo.”

Tori nodded and thanked him before walking Adam up the stairs. In his stunned state, he didn’t notice that Tori knew where his room was without him telling her. They stood in silence before Adam said, “Okay, can you explain to me what’s going on?”

Tori thought of maybe asking her dad to just erase Adam’s memory so that she could just wash her hands of this, never seeing Adam again. She wouldn’t like it, but she could live with it. Then she looked at him. In the bright light, facing the left side of his face, she could easily believe it was Luke. She’d lost him once already. She couldn’t do that again.

Tori spread her hands out in a placating gesture. “What do you want to know?”

Adam gaped, not seeming to know where to start. “Who are you? And what were those… those things?”

Tori rubbed his arm comfortingly, then frowned when it didn’t work. “To be honest, I don’t know what those things were. I’ve never seen anything like them.”

Adam looked disappointed, but nodded. “Okay. Who are you then?”

“Well my name is Victoria Williams. Most people just call me Tori, though.”

“Yeah, that’s really not what I meant.”

Tori smiled. _He sounds like Luke._  “Well, it’s complicated.” Tori took in a breath, trying to think of. She’d never really had to explain her life to someone else, and it was harder than she’d imagined. “First of all, that guy that healed your mom?” Adam nodded warily. “Well he’s a god.”

Adam stared at her. “What? That surfer looking guy is _God_?”

“Well he’s _a_ god, but he’s not _God_ god. There are kind of a lot of them. He’s one of the Greek ones. There are also Roman gods, Egyptians, Norse...you know, you’re starting to look sick, maybe we should sit down.”

Adam nodded absently. “Yeah. Yeah, good idea.” The two of them sat on the bed and allowed silence to overtake them for a few moments before Adam said, “Earlier, you called him dad. But he looks like he’s in his twenties. What was that?”

“Like I said; he’s a god, and gods can look however they want. Usually he looks even younger, but he changes a bit when I’m around so it won’t get too weird.”

Adam nodded, still a bit woozy. “So if your dad’s a god, then what are you?”

“I’m a demigod. It’s mostly like being human except I’m really strong and fast, most of my relatives could quite literally step on me, and sometimes monsters decide to kill me just cause. Oh, and I’m a pretty good singer. And archer. That’s just me though. Others are different.”

“Others?” Adam asked, looking slightly green.

“Yeah, but we don’t have to talk about that right now. You already have a lot to take in.” Tori wasn’t sure he could stand to hear anymore; mortal minds were so weak, they could rarely ever accept the existence of gods and monsters without breaking. And yet… “You’re taking this pretty well. You must have a pretty strong mind.”

Adam laughed sourly. “Trust me, I’m going crazy inside. I wouldn’t be surprised if I woke up right about now.”

 _Please don’t_. “I don’t think that’s gonna happen.”

Adam shook his head. “What am I gonna tell my mom?”

Tori shrugged. “You don’t have to tell her anything. In fact, you probably shouldn’t. Human minds usually don’t take it very well. Dad’ll take care of her memories. She’ll never know what happened.”

Adam turned to look at her for the first time since they sat down. “Why are you telling me then?”

Tori stared at him. She was tempted to tell him the truth - _you look like someone I used to know_ \- or make something up - _I can magically sense that you can handle it_ \- and ended up telling a half-truth. “I trust you.”

The two stared at each other. Tori was tempted to kiss him, wanted to so much, but stopped herself. “I should probably get going.” She stood up, but Adam grabbed hold of her wrist.

“Please don’t leave.” He looked desperate, almost crazed. He pulled back when he caught sight of her wide eyes. “I’m sorry. I just… don’t think I can stand to be alone right now. Could you maybe… stay here? I swear I won’t try anything.”

Tori looked at him to the bed and back again. Maybe this was the gods’ idea of a blessing. She couldn’t have Luke, so she got a convenient look-alike. One that never hurt anyone, that didn’t have any idea about her past or the things she’d done.

She took his hand in hers and squeezed. “Of course I will.”


	2. I have had it with these motherfuckin' daddy issues in my motherfuckin' fandoms!

Tori spent the night beside him in bed, wanting to touch him, but not able to. She’d offered to sleep on the floor, but Adam thought that would be rude of him, and she insisted that she would feel bad if he did. He offered the guest room instead, but she could tell that he wanted her closer. In the end, they agreed to share the bed, though Adam blushed when she lay down next to him.

Adam fell asleep easily with the right side of his face pressed into his pillow. Luke could never sleep like that because it always bothered him to have something cover or touch his scar. She was the only one he ever let touch it, and even then it made him uncomfortable. Her heart aching, Tori looked up at the ceiling so she wouldn’t have to look at him.

It was always hard for her to fall asleep, like her body was fighting her mind. Even now she still had nightmares, about Luke, her mom, Gaea. It was easier to stay awake until she couldn’t anymore and pray for dreamless sleep.

She forced herself to look at Adam, smiling softly when she did. He didn’t frown in his sleep like Luke used to, plagued by bad dreams as he was. He looked peaceful, and with the lights off she barely noticed the difference in his hair color from Luke’s. She wondered if she could convince him to grow it out a bit. And spending more time out in the sun would give him a proper tan, and maybe even lighten his hair...

Tori stopped herself. _What the hell am I doing?_ She was acting like a crazy person. _Luke’s gone_ , she told herself resolutely, _and Adam isn’t him_. She turned away from Adam completely, refusing to look at him, and soon fell asleep.

* * *

Adam and Tori stood beside the front door while they made plans to meet up again the next evening and discussed how to contact each other.

“I have a phone, but it’s kind of limited. We’re not really supposed to use most modern technology since it attracts monsters, but I should be able to call you.” She put her number into his phone before giving him a small coin bag of golden drachmas and explaining how to send an Iris message. “Just in case.”

Adam nodded, carefully taking the bag in his hands. “How are you gonna get home?”

“It’s only a few miles away. If I walk quickly, I should get there in half an hour or so.” Tori glanced out the window, frowning when she saw Apollo standing there. “Or maybe not.”

Adam looked out the window with her. “That’s your dad? The…god?”

Tori rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to sound so scared. It’s not like he can hear…you know, maybe I should go ahead and leave.”

Tori slipped out of the house, looking back once to wave goodbye before joining Apollo on the sidewalk. He started walking as soon as she joined him. “I thought you’d just send me back to camp.”

“I thought it would be nice to walk while we talk.”

Tori nodded absently. It was still weird to talk to her dad since they hadn’t always had a very good relationship. In fact, she’d hated him for years, feeling like he was responsible for her mother’s death. But after the war with Gaea and her giants, they’d been taking steps to have a relationship that involved more than her glaring at him and waiting for him to leave. They’d even started talking to each other on a weekly basis. He was one of the only people she’d talked to about her feelings for Luke. It was the sort of thing she could imagine telling her mother if she were still here, making it kind of bittersweet. Still, she liked having a parent again, and she could tell Apollo was trying, even if he didn’t always get it right.

The two walked in silence for a bit before Apollo said, “I’m sure you noticed that Adam looks a lot like a certain son of Hermes.”

“No, not really.”

Apollo rolled his eyes. “Nice try.

Tori shrugged. “Worth a shot.” Tori looked at him suspiciously. “Tell me the truth, dad. Is he Luke?”

Apollo shook his head. “No. He just looks like him.”

Tori sighed. “Of course.” Tori looked at her dad. He was more closed-off than usual, not even looking at her or smiling. “Something else is bothering you.”

Apollo gave her a wide smile. “You’re so smart. Nothing gets past you.”

“Not even attempts to change the subject.”

The god sighed. “No, not even that.” For once, he didn’t seem to know what to say. “There’s something weird about him. I feel like he’s important somehow.”

“What do you mean? Is it a prophecy?”

Apollo shook his head. “No, not exactly. It’s just a feeling, really. I think we should keep an eye on him, make sure he’s okay.” Apollo smiled. “Of course, you already have that under control, don’t you?”

Tori blushed, refusing to look at him. “Right.”

Apollo nudged her teasingly before his expression sobered. “I’m serious though. I think it might be a good idea to ask one of your Hecate friends to put protection spells on him.”

Tori panicked internally at the thought of someone from camp meeting Adam. She could almost see their judging, hateful looks, her siblings pitiful expressions, Adam’s disgust when he realized the truth… “I’ll think about it.”

Apollo nodded. “Good. And I’ll watch over him myself to make sure he’s okay.” They made it to the road that led into camp. Apollo stopped walking. “Tori.”

She stared at him nervously. “Yeah?”

“Be careful, alright? I don’t want you to be hurt again.”

Tori smiled bitterly. “I have a feeling that it’s not my choice.”

Apollo sighed sadly. “Probably not. Doesn’t mean you can’t try.” He gestured to the road. “Go on to camp. And take this.” He handed her a folded up piece of paper. “Give it to Chiron.”

Tori took the paper and put it in her pocket. They faced each other awkwardly. Apollo wanted to give his daughter a hug, but Tori backed away. “See you later dad.”

Apollo said goodbye, but Tori was already walking away. He watched sadly before leaving.

* * *

When Tori got back to camp, a swarm of people met her, bombarding her with questions and accusations. Will emerged from the crowd, grabbing her arm. “Tori, where the hell were you?! We thought you were dead!”

“I’m fine Will,” Tori said, willing herself not to be irritated by her sibling’s worry. “See? Not dead.”

Will started to say something, but stopped himself when Chiron made his way over to them. “Victoria,” he said sternly, “I expect you have a reason for leaving camp without telling anyone.”

Tori just stopped herself from looking at Will, thankful that he hadn’t told anyone where she was. Before she could say anything, she felt the note in her pocket warm up. She pulled it out and unfolded, laughing quietly at the contents before handing it to Chiron. “I seem to have a doctor’s note.”

Chiron took the note, eyebrows raising when he read it.

_Chiron,_

_By sanction of the awesomest and most handsome god, Tori is now allowed to leave camp whenever she wishes for the purposes of a top-secret mission assigned to her by me, Apollo, god-extraordinaire. She is also excused for leaving last night, for reasons that I don’t feel like explaining._

_Best Wishes,_

_Apollo, God of Medicine, Archery, Music, Prophecy, and other things that I can’t think of right now._

Below that there was written an address that Tori recognized as being minutes away from Adam’s house. _P.S. Tori is to have access to this apartment whenever necessary. Ciao_.

Chiron looked at Tori. “And you won’t tell me what this mission is?”

Tori shrugged. “It’s top secret. I don’t make the rules.”

He sighed. “Of course not.” Chiron turned to face the crown. “Everyone return to your assigned activities. Now!”

Everyone reluctantly dispersed, leaving only Will walking alongside his sister to the archery range. “Are you alright Will?”

He ignored her.

Tori sighed and tried again. “Look, I’m sorry I worried you. I didn’t realize I wouldn’t be coming back last night, but something came up and I had to handle it.”

Will turned on her, fuming. “Do you know what the first thing I thought when I realized you weren’t there?”

Tori stared at him, shocked and worried by his angry tone. “What?”

“I thought about Dan. Because the first time you left, when you went with _him_ , you left Dan your guitar. And when he realized what happened, he _cried_ over that guitar, and he wondered what he could have have done, could have said that might have made you stay.” Will’s voice trembled. Tori’s heart ached when she realized there were tears in his eyes. “And I realized that it was happening again, except this time, I was Dan, and I didn’t know what to do…”

Tori felt guilt building up like a stone in her stomach as Will started to cry. She reached for him, pulling him into her arms. Will went easily, clutching to her arms. “I’m sorry Will, I didn’t realize how you’d feel. I swear I thought I’d be back last night.” Tori hated herself in that moment as she realized that she hadn’t even thought about any of her siblings at all today or last night. She’d thought of Luke more than she had them, and Luke was dead.

Will sniffed and let go of Tori, furiously wiping away his tears. “Just promise you won’t do anything like that again, okay?”

Tori wanted to assure Will that she wouldn’t, but knew she couldn’t be sure. “I promise that I will try to stay safe and that I’ll contact you if something happens and I can’t get back when I’m supposed to.”

Will sighed. “Good enough.” Tori smiled and tried for a playful arm-punch, but Will brushed her off. “I’ll see you later, Tori.” Will walked off, leaving Tori to stare at his retreating back.

* * *

Tori had mostly forgotten (read: ignored) her bad mood, and it completely disappeared once it was time for dinner. She ate quickly, shoveling the food in a way that made her siblings look at her in a weird mixture of amusement, confusion, and horror. The only thing she didn’t rush was her offering, taking a moment to thank her dad for his help. She left before dinner was even officially over, stopping only to give a quick goodbye to Chiron and her cabin members.

She jogged half the way to Adam’s house, smiling to herself when she knocked instead of taking her old place at his window. He opened the door almost immediately and slipped out, closing it behind him. “Hey.”

Tori eyed him suspiciously. “Hi. Why are you acting like a bad actor in a spy movie?”

“Well, you said my mom shouldn’t know about all this.” The two of them started walking to the sidewalk.

“I don’t see how that translates to ‘act like a not-at-all-suspicious B-movie villain’. Different dialects, maybe?”

Adam rolls his eyes. “You’re a regular comedian, huh?”

“You love it,” Tori said cheekily before stopping in her tracks as her blood ran cold. She fought to regain control of herself, forcing her legs to move.

Luckily, Adam didn’t notice. “Oh, yeah. I’m cracking up. Can’t you tell?” Tori smiled at him, easily moving past her slip-up. “Where are we going anyway?”

“My dad’s letting me use an apartment near here. We can talk more when we get there.”

The rest of the walk was uneventful. The apartment was on the top floor of a twenty story building. Tori didn’t have a key, but it opened for her instantly. The furthermost wall was made entirely of glass. Tori realized that it was facing east so as to show the sun rise. The other walls were painted in warm browns and oranges with several pieces of artwork placed strategically around the place, including a hammered bronze sun behind the couch in the living room.

Adam looked at the sun as he said, “You know, your dad has very bright taste for someone who doesn’t seem very bright.”

Tori laughed. “Well he is the sun god you know.”

Adam frowned. “I thought he was the god of arrows or something like that.”

“Yeah, he’s the god of a lot of things. I don’t think he remembers them all either. Hungry?” Tori made her way to the kitchen, opening the fridge to see what was there.

“Actually, I already ate,” Adam said sheepishly.

“Thirsty then. We have milk, orange juice, ooh, champagne! We can have mimosas.”

“Aren’t those more of a breakfast thing? At least, that’s what TV says, and I don’t think TV would lie to me.”

Tori laughed. “You say that like there’s a wrong time for orange juice and champagne.” Tori took out a couple of glasses and placed them on the kitchen island before frowning. “How old are you?”

Adam’s eyebrows raised in disbelief. “Really? You’re a badass Greek demigod, a member of the most decadent family in recorded history, and you care about whether or not I’m 21?”

Tori looked at him seriously. “You know, my grandfather _is_ the god of law and justice. I know he doesn’t take it seriously, but that’s no reason for the rest of us not to.” Tori tried and failed to keep a straight face, dissolving into laughter. “Seriously though, how old are you?”

“I’m 19.”

Tori considered it for a moment before shrugging. “Close enough.”

Adam frowned slightly, small enough that Tori didn’t notice as she fixed their drinks. “How old are you?”

“23 since last fall.” She turned around when she heard him make a surprised noise. “Something wrong with that?”

Adam shook his head quickly. “No, no. I just…thought you were younger is all.”

Tori rolled her eyes. “Oh, yeah. 23, I’m an old maid. You don’t know this, but I have three cats already.” Tori raised her glass to clink against his. “To the gods.”

“Is that something you have to say?” Adam asked, taking a sip and immediately putting it down.

“It’s more of a formality, really. Just something to keep them from getting offended and stomping on me. Family, right?”

Adam laughed. “Yeah, I don’t always get along with my family either.”

Tori frowned, easily finishing her entire glass before setting it aside. “I thought you and your mom got along?”

“We do. I don’t mean her. It’s my dad, well, my father, I guess.”

Tori arched an eyebrow. “You sound close.”

Adam laughed. “No kidding. He and my mom were never really together, you know?”

Tori nodded. “One night stand?”

Adam shuddered. “Please don’t say that in relation to my parents _ever_ again.”

“Don’t worry about it.” She started making herself another glass. “So, you were talking about your dad?”

Adam eyed her glass and shrugged. “Not much to say really. He just…isn’t a part of my life. He comes by every now and then to try and bond or whatever, but I don’t really think of him as my dad. Actually, I think it’s kind of cool that you and your dad get along so well.”

Tori stared at her glass, hearing the crack when he hand gripped its handle too tightly. _Great. Another way he’s like Luke. Daddy issues._ “I actually hated my dad for a long time,” Tori confessed, the words spilling out from her uncontrollably, “I blamed him for my mom’s death. Looking back, I think he blames himself too. But a lot of stuff’s changed the last couple of years. I lost people, and I didn’t really know how to handle it. I had my twin brother Dan, but we’re not as close as we used to be, mostly because of a bunch of stuff I did. I have other siblings, but they’re all younger than me, and most of them have their own things to worry about. None of my friends understood what I was going through. They try, but it just isn’t the same for them as it is for me. Really, I just needed a parent again. And, surprise surprise, Apollo wanted to be a parent. And now we just try and make it work.” She was sure it must be awkward for Adam to hear about, but he was just going to have to deal with it. She’d already lost Luke, in part, because of his hatred for his father. She felt guilty for her own part in it - the way she’d allowed it to grow unchecked, too caught up in her own resentment to ever notice that Luke’s was hurting him.  

Adam contemplated this, focusing on the cracks in Tori’s glass. “So you’re saying I should try and talk to him?”

“I’m saying that sometimes you have to meet people half-way, even if you really don’t want to. Sometimes that involves letting go of old pain and anger.” Tori could think of a lot of problems that would have been solved if she and Luke had been more willing to forgive and forget the past, and a few more that would never have begun in the first place.

“I’m not _angry_ ,” Adam insisted, “I’m just... _indifferent_. It’s completely...not the same.”

“I can tell,” Tori snarked, carefully pouring her drink into a new glass before drinking half of it. Checking the time on her phone, she decided to put it away for now. “We didn’t come here to talk. Come on, we got work to do.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the island back to the living room until they reached the couch.

“Can you stop pulling me places,” Adam complained, joining her on the couch. “You did that yesterday too. It’s weird.”

“Sorry,” Tori said distractedly, not really paying attention. She grabbed his arm carefully, pushing up the sleeve. His skin was pale and unmarked. It was a sharp contrast to Luke’s tanned and scarred skin, a result of years on a cruise ship and fighting monsters, though the Curse of Achilles had healed most of them, the sole exception being the one along his cheek.

Tori forced the thoughts away, focusing on Adam now, and only him. “My dad said that there’s something...weird about you. Important, somehow. So what I’m going to do is put a little bit of magic on you. Nothing special, all it will do is make me aware that someone’s trying to hurt you or if there’s anything or one magical around you, like the monsters from yesterday. It will also give me an idea of where you are in relation to me. It should make you a bit more - for lack of a better word - durable.”

“‘Durable’?”

Tori nodded distractedly. “Yeah. So, for example, if a monster punches you, instead of all your guts flying out of your body, you’ll just _feel_ like all your guts flew out of you.”

“Ah.”

Tori rolled up her own sleeve, allowing Adam to see the small rune that had been burned into her wrist. Tori’d had to be very careful when asking Lou Ellen how to put protective magic on a person, and even then the younger demigod still asked some uncomfortable questions. The result was that Tori ended up relying on the ‘top secret’ excuse more than she probably should have. Fixing the rune over the identical spot on Adam’s own, Tori allowed the magic to flow through her into him, creating a protective shield over him.

Adam gripped the arm of his couch with his other hand, his knuckles turning white. He bit his lip as sweat beaded on his brow. He let out a small whimper that soon snowballed into a pained scream.

Just before the sound of it became unbearable, the spell was done, leaving a small rune similar to her own burned into Adam’s wrist. Tori rubbed the charred skin comfortingly. “Are you okay L-...Adam?” She forced the name out, though it was as difficult as having a tooth pulled using only rusty pliers.

Adam was too caught up in his own pain to notice Tori’s slip-up. “No! God _damn_ , that hurt!” Tori went to get him his drink, which he quickly downed. He calmed down after a few minutes. “Am I gonna have to put a bandage or something on this?”

Tori shook her head. “No. I am going to have to manipulate the Mist around it to keep anyone from seeing it, though.”

Tori explained the Mist to him, and he nodded along slowly to what she said. “Okay. Now, do you have anything to make this stop burning?”

Tori frowned, grabbing his arm and pulling it to her face. “Is it still doing that? It should have stopped by now.”

Adam didn’t answer, and when Tori looked up, she realized why. They were so close now that their faces were only inches apart. Slowly, like she was afraid he might run away, Tori lifted her hand up and placed it on the right side of his face - right where Luke’s scar would be.

 _There,_ she thought, leaning in, _Perfect._ The two kissed shyly at first, barely even pressing their lips together. They stopped after a single moment, looking at each other from beneath hooded eyelids before kissing again. Tori wrapped one arm around his back, gripping the neck of his shirt fiercely. Adam was gentler, more shy, only moving his hands up to loosely grab her waist. Tori pushed him back so that he was laying down on the couch with her on top of him, forcing his mouth open with her tongue, sliding it against his own. Adam groaned, but only held her tighter, seeming content to let her take the reigns.

Tori pulled back for a brief moment to look into his eyes. They were so blue… She kissed him again, gentler this time...

_Luke…_

Tori froze. Adam noticed and pulled back, looking at her with worry. “Are you okay?”

Tori pulled away from him, guilt eating at her insides. She moved to the other side of the couch, trying to put distance between them, but not wanting to be too far away. “We should probably stop.”

Adam sat up, frowning. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing. I just feel like we’re moving too fast is all.” She stood up and grabbed the champagne glasses. “I’m gonna clean up a bit. You should probably get ready to go. It’s pretty late.” Tori went into the kitchen, leaving Adam alone and confused.

“What just happened?"


	3. Are you sure this is a good idea? No? You're gonna do it anyway? OK.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There /is/ sex in this chapter, so if you don't want to see it you can read the first section and then skip down to the last part where the little line is. Enjoy!

Tori dragged herself into the apartment, feeling like she was going to collapse. She’d woken up three times last night from nightmares before giving up and starting her chores. Then she’d lost a sword fight because she was so tired, got into an argument with a member of the Hephaestus cabin, and was still being ignored by Will. She was glad that she and Adam hadn’t made any plans to meet up after last night, and was perfectly happy to use her tiredness as an excuse for her feelings rather than last night’s disaster.

As painful as it was to think about the night before, she didn’t think she could stand to be at camp anymore. In her sensitive state, it was too difficult to be around anyone, and everything there reminded her of Luke, from the lake to the dining pavilion. At least the apartment only reminded her of Adam.

So of course Adam was there when she showed up. She was pretty sure the gods were taking bets on how much she could handle in one lifetime. She hoped Dionysus was losing.

“What are you doing here?” Tori asked him, not even trying to hide her irritation.

For his part, Adam looked more subdued than anything else and made no attempt at sarcasm. “Well, I tried calling you, but you didn’t answer.”

“My phone was in my cabin all day.”

“Yeah, and I didn’t want to waste any of the drachmas you gave me, so I figured I’d just come over instead. I didn’t have a key, but the door opened for me.”

Tori nodded absently. “Yeah, dad probably got it to do that. Anyway, I’m pretty tired, so can you wait until after I take a nap until we talk?”

Adam frowned and checked the clock. “It’s almost eight o’clock.”

“Yeah, so?”

“So are you sure it’s a good idea to take a nap right now?”

“No, and I don’t care. I’m _tired._ ” If she were thinking about it, Tori might have felt bad about her snappish tone, but she was past the point of caring by now. She made her way to one of the two bedrooms, kicking off her shoes in the hall. “Feel free to stay.”

She wasn’t sure if Adam took her up on the offer since she fell asleep as soon as she hit the bed.

Her dream started simply enough. She and Luke stood next to each other on the _Andromeda_ at night. They were looking out at the ocean with the lights from the boat shining off the water. Luke smiled at her, caressing the left side of her face before kissing her soundly on the lips. Tori closed her eyes and sighed, feeling peaceful for a moment before opening her eyes again.

She was still kissing someone, but she realized that it was Adam. He smiled before turning away from her, looking out at the sunny cemetery they were standing in. Tori didn’t know how they got there, but then, she didn’t know how Luke turned into Adam anyway. Really, there were more important things to worry about. Like the giant hole in the ground, for instance.

Adam starting moving towards the hole. Tori grabbed hold of his arm to stop him, but it was sucking him in. She needed both hands to keep him with her, but someone else had locked onto her other hand and wasn’t letting go. Tori looked to see who it was.

“Luke, let go of me.”

Luke shook his head, pulling her towards him. “Stay with me.”

“Luke,” Tori said, trying to pull away from him, “I need to help Adam!”

“No!” He pulled her closer to him. “You belong with _me_!”

“Tori, please!” Adam shouted. He was having difficulty standing, and almost fell to his knees. “Help me!”

Tori tried to help him, but Luke’s grip was unrelenting. He kept pulling her towards him, making it harder for her to hold onto Adam before she finally let go.

“ _Adam!_ ”

Tori woke up.

 _Well that was weird_ , she thought as she got up. Still, it wasn’t the worst dream she’d ever had involving Luke, although sadly it had less nudity than the other dream she’d had involving Luke and Adam. _A girl can dream_.

Once she got up, she went into the living room to find Adam still there. “Hey. I thought you’d have left by now.”

“I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well, you were really tired earlier, and I was worried. And you were pretty upset after...last night.”

Tori sighed, taking her seat beside him. “Yeah, I know.” Adam started to say something else, but Tori cut him off. “What was it you wanted to talk about earlier?”

Adam hesitated, looking down at his hands. “I took your advice and tried calling my dad today.”

“Really? What did he say?”

“He can’t really say anything anymore. He died four years ago.”

Tori winced. “I’m sorry, Adam. I didn’t know.”

Adam shrugged. “It’s okay. On the bright side, it turns out that John had two other kids.”

“Really?”

Adam nodded. “Yeah. Dean and Sam. They said they’d come up to see me.”

“Are you okay?” Tori asked, rubbing his arm comfortingly.

“Yeah. It’s just weird, you know? Everything’s happening so fast. Two days ago I was just a med-student, and now there are gods and my dad’s dead and I have brothers.”

Tori laughed quietly. “It was pretty much the same way for me when my mom died. Suddenly my entire life was turned upside down. It’s kind of funny, in a depressing sort of way.”

Adam looked at her with a curious expression. “How did you deal with it?”

Tori gave him a sad smile. “Honestly? I didn’t. I just kept it in until I couldn’t anymore.”

“What did you do then?” Adam’s voice was quiet, his eyes sad and sympathetic.

Tori’s face was blank. She didn’t look at him, instead staring at her feet, which she’d pulled up onto the couch. “I was lucky I held it in as long as I did. I had someone to talk to, someone who understood me.”

“Who?”

“A friend...Luke.” Her voice cracked when she said his name. Tears welled in her eyes.

“Friend?”

“Boyfriend,” Tori explained sadly, “Ex-boyfriend now I guess, since he died a over a year ago.”

Adam looked at her with wide eyes. “Holy crap. Tori, I had no idea.”

Tori shrugged weakly. “I’m better now. I don’t think of him as much.” _Except when I look at you. Then he’s all I see._ “That’s why I got upset last night. I hadn’t kissed anyone since he d—...since then.”

Adam blushed lightly. “Oh. I didn’t know that.”

“I know,” Tori said miserably, “I should have talked to you about it before we got that far.”

“It’s okay. You didn’t know that was gonna happen.”

They were silent for a moment before Tori moved closer to him, drawing circles on his arm. “We could try again. If you wanted to, that is.”

Adam frowned in confusion. “What do you mea-” Tori cut him off by kissing him, happily running her fingers through his hair. Adam, stunned into stillness at first, quickly responded to her, slowly running his hands up her back. After a few minutes, she pulled away from him, grinning when he whimpered needily. “Come one,” she said, pulling him by the hand to the bedroom. She stopped halfway. “Hold on. I have to do something.”

Adam frowned. “Are you alright? Do you need me to do someth—”

Tori shut him up by kissing him. When she pulled away, she said, “Just wait for me a minute, ok?”

Adam nodded slowly. “Okay.”

While Adam went into the bedroom, Tori took out her phone, remembering her promise to Will. He didn’t have a phone, so instead she texted Dan and asked him to tell Will she’s not coming back to camp tonight. Once she sent the text, she put her phone in her pants pocket, choosing to ignore it for now.

Tori went to the bedroom and stood by the door, looking at Adam. He stared at her, transfixed, and she wondered again at his resemblance to Luke. His hair was darker and not as long, his skin pale, and his eyes were too dark, but other than that it was almost a perfect match. Pushing away from the door, Tori made her choice. 

Tori dimmed the light so that it was barely on and walked slowly over to Adam, gaze fixed on him. He eyed her nervously when she stood in front of him and placed her hands on his chest. Adam stifled a yelp when she sat in his lap, hands reaching up to grab her waist uneasily. Tori had no such hesitation and kissed him eagerly, caressing his face with one hand while using the other to palm him through his pants. Adam moaned helplessly, pushing her shirt up to get at more of her back. She broke apart from him only to pull off his shirt, groaning unabashedly when she ran her hands over his taut muscles.

Tori groped him for a minute longer before moving back to take off her top, leaving her in a pair of skinny jeans and a black lace bra. Adam stared at her with wide eyes and moved his hands up her back to unlatch the bra, but Tori stopped him. She pushed his chest so that he lay completely down on the bed and grabbed his wrists, placing them firmly on either side of his head. “Keep these here.” She smiled when he nodded eagerly, getting off the bed to take off her jeans. Adam eyed her hungrily, making a low sound in the back of his throat, looking like he regret not being able to move his hands.

Tori climbed back onto the bed, moving slowly. She sat in front of Adam and slowly unbuttoned his jeans, smoothly pulling them off and dropping them to the ground. Once Adam’s pants were gone, Tori repositioned herself so that she was on top of his lap. She ground back on him, grinning ear to ear when Adam whined helplessly. “You’re killing me, Tori.”

“Yeah,” she said, reaching back to unclasp her bra, “I know.” She let the bra fall to the bed before pushing it off. Deciding to take pity on Adam, she told him, “You can move your hands, but stay laying down, or else I’m going to be much less nice.”

Adam just barely waited for her to finish talking before reaching his hands up to grope her breasts, delighting in the feel of her supple skin. He carefully ran his palms down her stomach to her legs, resting them on her thighs. He looked from her to her underwear and back again, giving her a pleading look. Tori gave an exaggerated eye roll. “Go ahead.”

“Yes,” Adam said, careful not to lean forward as he pulled Tori’s underwear down her legs and flung them across the room.

Tori smirked at him, leaning back to look at his boxers. “Well now I feel under-dressed.”

Adam smiled at her. “You should fix that.”

Tori arched an eyebrow. “Are you telling me what to do?”

He shook his head. “No, ma’am.”

“Oh, I liked that. Say it again.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Tori hummed happily, palming Adam through his boxers once more before pulling them off. Adam whined at the feeling of the fabric against his sensitive skin before sighing in relief when it was gone. Tori kissed him, lightly drawing her fingers down his forearms and biceps before resting her hands on his chest. He wasn’t quite as muscular as Luke had been, but he was strong and his skin felt better than silk under her hands. Tori allowed one of her hands to slide lower, firmly grabbing Adam’s erection. He gasped like he’d had the wind knocked out of him when she moved him inside her, carefully sliding down on him.

Tori stopped moving and closed her eyes as she fought to catch her breath. When she opened her eyes again, she looked at Luke. His hands clawed desperately at the sheets. His eyes were slammed shut, his mouth gaping. Tori kissed his neck softly, gently caressing his face. Once they’d both calmed down, Tori pulled back so that she was sitting up again and slowly rocked back and forth, mewling quietly at the feel of him inside of her.

After a minute Tori wondered why Luke hadn’t moved yet and realized that he was waiting for permission. Thinking that was a bit strange, but not upsetting, Tori said, “You can move now.”’

Luke let out a relieved breath and carefully thrust into her, moaning softly at the feeling of her surrounding him.

Something was...different. Luke was never this slow, this gentle. It had always been almost like they were fighting, constantly pulling and pushing and clawing at each other until they found relief. Now she was in total control, and she didn’t know why. Why was he acting different now? It didn’t make sense. She was tempted to ask him, but she didn’t dare speak for reasons she couldn’t think of.

They moved together in near-perfect unison until the levee breaks. Pleasure floods through them both; she clenches and flutters around him and he pulses into her. His fists clenched in the sheets, her nails scratching his chest, each delicious throb fueling the other.

Tori lay with her head pressed against Luke’s chest, listening to the comforting beat of his heart. One of Luke’s hands tugged through her hair while the other hald onto her waist.

 _Not Luke_ , she realized looking at him, _Adam_.

Adam smiled at Tori, but for the first time he saw her back and lay frozen in shock. “Tori…what happened to you?”

Tori gave him a confused look before sighing when she realized what he was talking about. “A hellhound attacked me and my mom. I was able to kill it, but only after it killed my mom and fucked up my back.”

Adam stared at the long scars, reaching from her arm down to the small of her back. “Do they hurt?”

Tori paused, thinking of the time Luke had asked the same question. “No. They just ache sometimes. Usually when someone touches them.” She looked at him with a face that was maybe a little too cold. “I don’t like it when people touch them.”

Adam nodded a bit anxiously. “I won’t.”

“Thank you.” She checked the clock on the nightstand — 12:18. “We should go to sleep.” She left the light on, burying her face into the pillow. She felt Adam lay down next to her. His presence was surprisingly comforting, and she waited for the inevitable guilt she would feel. But it never came. In spite of what she’d done, she couldn’t bring herself to feel bad. For a moment, she’d had Luke back, and it was more than she’d ever thought she would get. How could that be a bad thing?

 _It’s not_ , she thought, trying to convince herself, _It just isn’t a very good thing_.

* * *

Adam rolled over in bed, frowning when he heard a ringing noise. He sat up, blushing a bit when he saw Tori next to him, sleeping silently. He heard the noise again and realized it was coming from a pair of jeans on the floor. Moving slowly so as not to wake Tori, he got out of bed and picked up the pants, sliding the phone out of the back pocket.

_2:03_

_Caller: Dan Williams_

Thinking about it for a moment, Adam remembered Tori mentioning a twin brother last night (earlier really, since it was only one am), though she never mentioned his name. Looking back at her, he decided it would be easier to answer the phone and tell him she was asleep. Adam clicked the answer button and waited for Dan to speak.

“ _Tori? Are you alright? Where are you?_ ”

The man’s voice was frantic, and he talked so quickly that Adam wasn’t able to get a word in until he stopped altogether. “Tori can’t talk right now. She’s asleep.”

Dan was silent for a moment. Adam figured he was surprised not to hear his sister. His next words were told in a calm, almost cold tone. “ _Who is this?_ ”

“Adam. Adam Milligan.”

“ _Why do you have my sister’s phone?_ ”

“Well it was ringing, and I didn’t think she’d appreciate being woken up right now.”

“ _Where was her phone then?_ ”

“In her pants,” Adam said before realizing that that probably wasn’t the smartest thing to say.

“... _I’m assuming she’s not wearing her pants?_ ”

“Am I allowed to say ‘No’?”

“ _Yes._ ”

“Then no.”

Dan didn’t say anything for a moment before asking, “ _Is my sister safe?_ ”

Adam thought that was a weird question before remembering that monster-fighting demigods probably got into trouble often. “Yes.”

“ _Say ‘I swear on the River Styx that Victoria Williams is safe and unharmed’._ ”

“Um, I swear on the River Styx that Victoria Williams is safe and unharmed.” Adam was pretty sure he didn’t imagine the sound of thunder he heard.

“ _Have you been struck by lightning?_ ”

“No.”

“ _Good. When Victoria wakes up, can you tell her to call me back and that Will got her message?_ ”

“Sure.”

“ _Thanks,_ ” Dan said before hanging up.

The phone reverted back to its lock screen. Adam almost put it down until he saw the picture.

Now as far as he knew, Tori had never taken any pictures of him. So who the hell was the man on her phone?

It might not have been him, but it sure as hell _looked_ like him. The man was standing with Tori in front of a old-looking brown cabin. Tori looked mildly uncomfortable, but that probably had more to do with the fact that she was wearing a shirt with sleeves to her elbows in what looked like summer than anything else. Other than that, she seemed happy and was smiling brightly. Adam couldn’t tell exactly how old she was, but she was definitely years younger than she was now, and looked less weary than how he knew her. And the man might have been him with a tan, except for the long white scar running down the right side of his face, from just below his eye all the way to his jaw.

Adam wasn’t sure how long he stood there staring at the phone before making his way to Tori’s side of the bed and shaking her awake. Tori gave him an irritated look before seeing her phone in his hand. “Why do you have my phone?”

“Your brother called. Who’s this?”

“What are you…” Tori trailed off when she saw the screensaver. Quietly, she said, “I can explain.”

“Yeah? How about you start with telling me who he is?”

Tori sat up and took the phone for him, carefully placing it on the nightstand. She seemed to think about what she should say before giving up and telling him, “That’s Luke.”

“Luke? Your dead boyfriend, Luke?” Tori winced at the word ‘dead’, but nodded. “Why, why does he look like me?”

“I don’t know why, he just does.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?!”

“Would you just calm down!”

“ _Calm down?!_ Tori, what the hell?!”

“Adam, _please_ , just sit down and we’ll talk ab—”

“Talk? Alright, fine, let’s talk.” He sat down in front of Tori, staring at her intently. “So? Talk.”

Tori looked around the room frantically before forcing herself to calm down and talk. “I was in the city after one of my brother’s plays and I saw you. And yes, I noticed that you looked like Luke, so I followed you.”

“And then you saw the monsters?”

Tori fidgeted with her hair and didn’t look at him. “No. That was about two weeks later.”

For a moment, Adam was silent. Then, “ _You_ _stalked me?!_ ”

“It sounds really bad when you say it like that!”

“It _is_ bad!” 

“Yeah, but it could be worse!”

Adam made several angry sounds and turned away from her, dragging the palms of his hands over his eyes. Once he calmed down, he looked at her again. “Is this why you liked me? Why you— why we—” Adam was too angry and disgusted to finish his sentence and stood up, quickly putting his clothes on before leaving the room.

“Where are you going?” Tori demanded, following him while she pulled on her own clothes. “Adam? Adam, where are you going?!”

“ _Anywhere_ but here!” He looked at Tori one last time. “ _Don’t_ follow me!” Adam slammed the door shut behind him.

Tori stood staring at the door, half-dressed and alone. Silent, she made her way to the couch and sat down. She tried to ignore the pain at first, but after a few minutes she gave up, buried her head in her hands, and finally allowed herself to cry.

 


	4. Angels? What's next, the tooth fairy?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of the dialogue from the first part of this chapter is taken from episode 4.19 of Supernatural, "Jump the Shark".

Sam rolled his eyes as he watched Dean replace the fake silverware with actual silver. “Dean, come on. I already told you, by all accounts, Adam Milligan is real.”

“I don’t care,” Dean said, taking out a glass and filling it with holy water.

Sam scoffed. “Seriously, Dean?”

“Yes, seriously! There’s no way this isn’t a trap. I just want to know what we’re dealing with.”

They stopped arguing when they noticed the boy walking into the diner. Sam called out, “Adam!”

Adam turned to look at Sam before making his way over to their table. “Hey. You’re Sam and Dean, right?”

Sam rose and held his hand out to Adam. “Yeah. Nice to meet you.”

Adam shook Sam’s hand carefully, looking oddly subdued. “You too.” Adam held out his hand to Dean, who took it reluctantly and almost immediately dropped it.

The three of them sat in awkward silence for a moment before Sam said, “I’m sorry. It’s just kind of weird to meet a brother we never knew we had.”

Adam laughed. “Yeah. I kind of get what you mean.” He tried to think of something to say before asking, “How did John die?”

“On the job,” Sam said.

Adam looked at him disbelievingly. “He was a mechanic, right?”

“A car fell on him,” Dean said coldly. Sam gave him a ‘really?’ look while Adam stared at him in shock.

Before Adam could say anything, a waitress came over. “Hey Adam, how ya doin’?” She set a glass of water down in front of him.

“Oh, I’ll take that,” Dean said, grabbing the glass. When Adam and the waitress looked at him strangely, he said, “I’m very thirsty.”

The waitress frowned at him, but turned her attention to Adam. “The usual, Adam?”

“Uh, yeah, thanks Denise.” Denise left and Adam, still looking a bit queasy from Dean’s comment about the car, took a sip of water. Dean and Sam watched in anticipation, but it had no effect on him.

Sam started to say something, but just then Adam’s phone started ringing. Adam took it out and checked it, rolling his eyes and sighing when he saw who it was. He pressed the red decline button before turning his phone off. “Sorry about that.”

“No, it’s okay,” Sam said, “Who’s calling you?”

“My…I don’t know. Ex, I guess? We got into an argument the other day, and she’s been trying to call me ever since.”

“What did you two argue about?” Sam asked, happy to talk about _anything_ rather than sit in silence.

“It’s kind of personal, actually. It had to do with her ex-boyfriend.”

Dean arched an eyebrow. “Let me guess. She still carrying a torch for an ex?”

Adam laughed bitterly. “You could say that.” Denise came back and set a plate full of food in front of Adam. “Thanks.”

Dean stared intently at Adam, but the silver didn’t do anything to him, and Dean sat back in frustration while Adam wondered if insanity was genetic.

“So, Adam,” Sam began, “Why were you trying to call dad?”

“Well I was talking to my ex, Tori — she wasn’t my ex then — about her dad, and she thought it might be a good idea if I tried talking to him.”

“Why’d she say that?”

“She was talking about her dad and their relationship, and it made me think about how I didn’t really know John, and I wanted to fix that. Guess I was too late.” Adam finished eating and shifted uneasily. “Would you be more comfortable if we went to my house?”

“No,” Dean said immediately.

“Dean,” Sam reprimanded his brother before turning back to Adam. “Sure. That sounds nice.”

Adam wanted to walk since he didn’t have a car, but Dean refused to leave Baby alone. So Adam reluctantly got into the back of the car, wondering if he was about to be horribly murdered by his own brothers. Then when they got to his house, he thought he was about to be murdered by the random man standing in his house.

Adam was ready to run back outside, but Dean walked straight past him to the man. “Cas, what are you doing here?”

“Hello, Dean.”

Adam looked at Dean like he was crazy. “You know this guy?”

Dean nodded. “Don’t worry, he’s a friend.”

“I don’t care if he’s your friend, what the hell is he doing in my house?!”

“I don’t know, I haven’t asked him yet. Cas, what the hell?”

Cas ignored him and made his way to Adam.

“What are you—” Cas placed his hand on Adam’s chest, branding his ribs with Enochian symbols. Adam screamed and fell to the floor, held up only by Sam grabbing his arm at the last moment. “What did you do to me?!”

“I branded your ribs with protective symbols.”

“ _What the hell are you talking about?!_ ”

“You know Cas,” Dean said, “maybe you should take a moment to actually explain what the hell’s going on!”

Cas ignored him, focusing instead on Adam. “Adam, my name is Castiel. I’m an angel of the Lord.”

Adam stared open-mouthed at him. “ _What?!_ ”

Dean rolled his eyes. “Gee Cas, way to ease him into it.”

Sam tried to move Adam over to the couch, but Adam pulled away from him, backing away from them. “You’re crazy! All of you are insane!”

Sam made a placating gesture with his hands and tried to approach him again. “Adam, we can explain everything—”

Cas apparently wasn’t on board with that plan, and instead allowed his eyes to glow white while his wings became visible as shadows brushing along the walls and ceiling. Adam stared slack-jawed at the sight and started to fall down again before Sam caught him.

“Cas! Again, _ease him into it!_ ”

Sam and Dean moved their brother over to the couch. Adam barely noticed them, too busy gaping at Cas.

The angel turned to Dean. “We don’t have _time_ to ease him into it. Zachariah probably already knows he’s here.” Cas turned his attention back to Adam, moving to stand next to him. “Adam—”

Before he could say anything else, someone started banging on the door. “Adam! Adam, open this door _right now_ , or else I’ll _break it down!_ ”

Stunned, Adam ran to the door, then looked behind him at his brothers and Cas standing uselessly in the living room. “What are you idiots doing? Go in the kitchen!”

The three left reluctantly and Adam opened the door just as Tori was getting ready to break it down. “Tori, what are you—”

She didn’t wait for him to finish, and instead pushed a dagger into his hand. “Take this.” Tori barreled past him to the living room, eyes searching every inch of the room as her grip tightened around her sword handle. “Who’s here with you?”

“What? Why?”

“I sensed something from the spells I put on you before,” She explained, moving a chair to block the basement door in case something was down there. “There’s something not human here, now would you stop being a child and tell me—”

“Dean and Sam are here,” Adam said quickly. Reluctantly, he added, “And Castiel.”

“Who’s Castiel?”

“Dean’s Castiel.”

“...What?”

“Sorry, I thought you said ‘whose’.”

“I did say ‘who’s’.”

“No, I mean...never mind. He’s in the kitchen.”

Victoria made her way to the kitchen door, checking for her extra dagger and her magic ring. Adam told her, “I don’t think your sword will work on him.”

Tori turned to look at him in confusion. “Why not? Do you know what he is?”

“I don’t think you’ll believe me.”

Tori frowned. “Why wouldn’t I believe you?”

 _Well you sure as hell don’t care about me._ Putting aside his bitter thoughts, Adam tried to think of a good way to explain it to her before giving up and saying, “He’s an angel.”

Tori looked at him like she was worried he’d hit his head. “Adam,” she said slowly, “angels don’t exist.”

“And gods do?”

“Exactly.” Tori smiled playfully, then stopped when it didn’t work. “Seriously, Adam. I need to know what I’m dealing with if I’m going to fight it.”

“I told you already, it’s an angel.”

Tori rolled her eyes. “Adam, I know you’re upset, but this is not the time for jokes!”

“Upset? I’m _furious!_ Goddammit, Tori, _you hurt me_ _!_ ”

“Well I wanted to talk to you, but you wouldn’t answer the phone!”

“I don’t want to talk to you, I want you to _go away!_ ”

“What are they arguing about?”

Adam and Tori stopped yelling at each other and looked at the kitchen door. Tori asked Adam, “Who was that?”

From the kitchen they heard Dean say, in what was probably meant to be a hushed voice, “Cas, _shut up!_ ”

“Never mind.” Tori braced herself for a fight. “Adam, go wait outside. If I’m not out in 10 minutes, leave.”

“What? No, Tori, you don’t have to fight him, it’s okay.”

“Adam, I’m not arguing with you about this!”

From the kitchen Dean sighed, said, “Screw this,” and opened the kitchen door.

“Dean!” Sam called. Dean ignored him and stalked out into the living room, pulling Cas along with him.

Dean looked at Tori. “Hi. I’m Dean. And you are?”

Before Tori could say anything in response, Cas made his way past Dean to see Tori. “You’re not human.”

Tori looked him up and down. “I’m guessing you’re not either.” She raised her sword, but Adam pulled it away from her. “Hey!”

“No weapons!” Adam said, moving Tori’s sword and the dagger she gave him earlier and put them down on the coffee table.

“You’re being ridiculous!” Tori was sure she heard Dean snigger, but she ignored him for now.

“My house, my rules.”

Tori started to say something, but Dean interrupted her. “Look, Mrs. Robinson—”

“What did you just call me?” Tori demanded, taking out a dagger from a sheath around her thigh. Dean didn’t react well to that, and took out a gun of his own. Before either of them could do anything, Adam got in between them.

“Whoa! What the hell is wrong with you people?! If someone insults you, your response should not be to _take out a dangerous weapon!_ ” Tori looked away, but didn’t respond. Adam turned to Dean. “And you! You’re an adult!”

“I’m an adult,” Tori muttered.

Adam ignored her. “You’re in your thirties, Dean! _Learn to act like it!_ ” Neither Dean nor Tori responded, so Adam reached a hand out to each of them. “Weapons. Now.”

Dean rolled his eyes and handed over his gun, and Tori reluctantly gave Adam her dagger. Adam looked at her. “Is that all?”

“Yes.” Adam didn’t believe that at all, and only held his hand out longer. Tori sighed and handed over her black ring. “Be careful with that. It was a birthday present.”

“How is that a weapon?” Dean asked as Adam took the weapons to the table.

“Don’t worry your pretty little head about it, doll,” Tori said mockingly.

“OK,” Adam began before Dean could say anything, “Why don’t we talk about why the hell there’s an angel in my house.”

“He’s not an angel,” Tori insisted, staying close to the coffee table.

“Yes I am,” Cas said, “And you’re a demigod.”

Tori shrugged. “So? Any monster can tell that. Doesn’t make you special.”

“Tori, it’s true,” Adam said, “I saw his wings.”

“Lots of things have wings. Including some gods, like Eros and Thanatos.” Tori eyed Cas. “Is that it? Are you a god?” She moved to stand in front of Adam protectively, ignoring the fact that she was several inches shorter than him.

Cas frowned. “No, I’m an angel.”

Tori rolled her eyes. “Fine. Let’s say, hypothetically, that you’re an angel. What do you want with him?”

“That’s a good question,” Dean said, turning to face Cas, “What _are_ you doing here?”

“I’m here to talk to Adam.”

“Yeah, that’s not gonna happen,” Tori said.

“Tori,” Adam began.

“No, Adam! I’m not letting this _thing_ hurt you!”

“I’m not going to hurt him,” Cas insisted, “But he does need to go into hiding.”

“What?” Dean asked.

“I’m with him,” Adam said, “What the hell are you talking about?”

“It seems Zachariah has given up on Dean. He wants Adam to be Michael’s vessel.”

“Zachariah?” Adam asked, looking incredibly confused. He turned to Dean, but he was shell-shocked and wasn’t paying attention to anyone else.

“Another angel,” Sam told him.

“Not an angel,” Tori said, “And what does he mean by ‘vessel’?”

“Angels need human vessels to operate on earth,” Cas explained. “More powerful angels can only be held by certain people. Dean is Michael’s destined vessel, but since Adam is Dean’s brother, he’d be able to contain Michael.”

Sam scrunched his nose. “That sounds really wrong.”

“Why does Michael need a vessel?” Tori demanded. “Not that you’re an angel, but why can’t he just stay in Heaven playing his harp all day?”

“Because Lucifer’s out of Hell, and Michael thinks he needs to fight him.”

Tori rolled her eyes. “This is ridiculous.” Moving quickly, she grabbed her sword from the table and leveled it at Cas’s throat.

Dean and Sam jumped up to shout at her, but she ignored them. Adam pulled at her arm to try to get her to put the sword down, but she refused to relent. “Tori, _what the hell?!_ Put that down!”

Tori ignored him, focusing purely on the angel. “Get out of here _now_ , before I send you to Tartarus.”

Cas peered at her like he was trying to figure out if she was joking, even looking to Dean for confirmation. When he realized she wasn’t, he knocked the sword out of her hands, sending it flying across the room.

Tori rubbed her hurt hand. “Ow. Adam, hand me a dagger.”

Adam sighed. “Tori, would you please just listen to what he has to say?”

“No! He’s just messing with us so you’ll be off-guard when _he_ _kills you!_ ”

Dean nodded like he thought Tori had a point, which was the last straw as far as she was concerned. “Adam, we’re leaving.” She grabbed a dagger and her ring before pushing Adam to the door, never looking away from Cas. She turned around just as they reached the door, only to find Cas inches away from her. “Get out of my way.”

“No.”

She held up her dagger. “I said,” she stabbed his hand, pinning it to the door, “MOVE!”

Everyone was silent for a moment. Then Adam said, “How’s he going to do that if he has a knife in his hand?”

“SHUT UP, ADAM!” Tori made an irritated sound, which was only made worse when Cas effortlessly removed the dagger from his hand. “Oh, come on!” The celestial bronze didn’t affect him at all, she realized when she took the dagger back. “Fine. We’ll hear you out.”

Cas waited until he was sure Tori wouldn’t interrupt him again before saying, “Lucifer has been released from Hell. He wants to fight Michael so he can kill all of humanity, but to do that he and Michael both need willing vessels. Sam is Lucifer’s preferred vessel as Dean is Michael’s, but since Adam has Winchester blood, he could be a vessel for Michael. Lucifer is adamant on Sam, though.”

Tori looked at Sam for a moment. He’d been quiet the entire time. It was hard for her to imagine him as the devil. “I’m guessing you all don’t want that to happen. Why?”

“If Michael and Lucifer fight, then half of the world will be destroyed, millions will die. And that’s if Michael wins; if Lucifer wins, then _everyone_ will die.”

“What, are there no other options?”

Sam cut in before Cas could continue. “We’re trying to put Lucifer back into Hell before they can fight, but Michael and most of Heaven are against it.”

“Well why are they such douchebags?”

Dean snorted in an effort to stifle a laugh. Cas shot him a disapproving look before saying, “The Apocalypse is preordained by God. As such, they feel they have no choice but to carry it through.”

“And what’s your plan?” Adam asked. Tori gave him a confused ‘what are you doing’ look, but he kept his eyes on Cas.

“We have a way to force Lucifer back into Hell. There are four rings, each from one of the Horseman of the Apocalypse.”

Adam nodded slightly. “War, famine, death, and disease.”

“Pestilence, actually,” Sam corrected him, “but yes.”

“The rings can be used to open a portal into Lucifer’s cage in Hell,” Cas explained, “Once we open it, we only need to force him in.”

“Uh huh, and how exactly do you plan to do that?” Tori demanded.

Cas looked at Sam, who explained, “Our idea is to allow Lucifer to possess me, then hopefully I’ll be able to take control long enough to jump into the portal.”

Tori thought about that for a moment. “Wow. That’s a shit plan. And I’ve heard some pretty bad plans before, so I know what I’m talking about when I say that is actually the worst plan I’ve ever heard.”

“Look,” Dean said, “we didn’t say it was gonna be easy.”

“You also didn’t say it was gonna be stupid,” Tori shot back. “And even if all that’s true, why would I want Adam to be anywhere near you?”

“Don’t I get a say in this?” Adam asked angrily.

“Only if you agree with me,” Tori said. “I’m serious, Adam. If even half of what they’re saying is true, then being around them is like being in the same room as a ticking time bomb. It’d be safer for you and your mom at my dad’s apartment.” She frowned as though she had just now noticed something. “Where is your mom?”

“She’s visiting her sister in Minnesota. I couldn’t go because I didn’t want to miss any school.”

“Oh. Well that’s… convenient.” Tori grabbed Adam by the arm and pulled him to the door. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

Dean moved to block them. “For the last time, you can’t leave!”

“Actually,” Cas said, “that might be a good idea. If the apartment is protected by a god, then the angels won’t be able to go there without permission. It would be an act of war.”

“Great, let’s go, Adam.” Tori pushed Dean aside and started to open the door. “Bye.”

“Not exactly,” Cas said, “I think it would be a good idea if all of us went so that Zachariah won’t be able to find us.”

“You’ve got to be joking,” Tori groaned, “You know what? Fine, fine. Let’s just leave before my head explodes.” She pushed Adam through the door and slammed it behind herself. Sam, Dean, and Cas stood staring at the door wondering if they should follow when Tori opened it again. “Hurry up, already! I don’t have time to wait for you dumbasses to learn how to walk!” Then she slammed it shut again.

Dean scoffed. “Well isn’t she a fucking ray of sunshine.”

“I heard that!” Tori shouted from outside.

Dean looked at the other two with wide eyes. “No one say anything.”

“I heard that too! And bring my sword!”

* * *

Tori opened the door to allow the men in before tossing her stuff on the coffee table. She almost closed the door before realizing that Cas hadn’t come in yet. “What are you waiting for?”

Cas looked around awkwardly. “This is the territory of a pagan god, if I come in without permission, it will be seen as an act of aggression.”

“Well what do you want me to do?” Tori asked irritably.

“You’re Apollo’s daughter. You can invite me in as long as you bear responsibility for any transgressions I commit.”

“Fine. I invite you in. Now sit down and shut up.” She threw off her jacket and shoes. “Okay, I want to take a nap, so I’m going to be in my room, Adam, you can have the spare room, Sam can sleep on the couch, and Dean can sleep on the floor next to him.”

“How come I have to sleep on the floor?”  
  
“Because I don’t like you.” Tori shut and locked her door behind her and fell to the bed in exhaustion.

The dream came easily. Tori lay in her bed with Luke on one side and Adam on the other. Luke kissed her squarely on the lips, holding her to him by her hair. Adam kissed her neck and shoulder eagerly, pushing her bra strap down so it hung off her shoulder.

“You know, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but now I know.”

Tori snapped towards the voice, finding a balding white man in a suit standing at the end of the bed. Frowning, she said, “You weren’t in my dream last time. And frankly, I don’t want you here now.”

The man smiled easily. Tori found him weirdly… slimy, in a way. Like a lawyer. “My apologies. I didn’t mean to interrupt your private time.”

“Well, you could fix that by leaving.”

“I would, but we really do have some important things to talk about. I’m Zachariah.”

Tori pulled a blanket over herself uncomfortably. “Aren’t you one of Castiel’s ‘angel’ friends?”

“I am. And I want you to know that we don’t at all blame you or your father for the damage done by the Winchesters.”

“Great, neither do I. Now, if that’s all—”

“It’s not, actually. You see, we know that Adam is under your protection. If you  were to hand him over, we’d be happy to make it worth your while.”

Tori pretended to consider that before saying, “Yeah, you know, I just don’t see that happening.”

“We have a lot to offer. Eternity in Heaven, your mom and brothers alive and well.”

Tori stopped playing now, and her voice was low and cold. “The dead should stay dead.”

“Even Luke?” He asked, no longer smiling.

With narrowed eyes and a stony expression, Tori stood up and slowly walked over to him until she was inches from his face. “Let me make something very clear to you.” Her voice was cold and quiet. “I have lost my mother. I have lost Lee and Michael. I have lost Luke, and if you try to take Adam from me, it will not end well for you. Now get the fuck out of my dream.”

Zachariah stared at her angrily as his eyes glowed white and his wings appeared as shadows on the walls behind him. He opened his mouth, but all that came out was a high-pitched ringing sound. Tori screamed as the light burned her eyes in their sockets and the noise liquefied her eardrums.

When Tori woke up, she lay staring up at her ceiling for a moment before throwing her arm over her eyes. “Fuck.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: 'Mrs. Roger' is a term used to describe an older woman who likes to seduce younger men.


	5. ALL the angst!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of the dialogue from this chapter is from season 5 episode 18 of Supernatural, "Point of No Return".

Tori tried to go back to sleep for over an hour, but the one time she wanted it, it avoided her. Typical.

When she got up, it was already midnight. So maybe longer than an hour. She wasn’t entirely sure when she had left camp, but she was glad that she’d told her siblings not to miss her if she didn’t come back for the night.

She only got up for some milk in the hope that it would help her sleep, passing through the living room on her way. Sam and Dean were fast asleep on the couch and floor respectively. Castiel wasn’t there, and Tori wondered where he’d gone.

Tori sighed tiredly when she saw Adam sitting alone at the kitchen’s island, but decided it wouldn’t be worth it to go back to her room.

“Hey,” she said softly.

Adam turned around when he heard her. “What are you doing up?”

“I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d get something to drink. You?”

“I couldn’t sleep either, so I made some eggs,” he said, moving to the side so she could see his plate. “Sadly, I forgot that I don’t know how to cook eggs, so they’re disgusting. Do you have any fruit?”

“Yeah, I think we have some starfruit. Dad loves irony, you see.”

Adam watched intently as she took out a yellow fruit and started cutting it into slices. “Can you tell me about him?”

Tori frowned at him. “Who?”

“Luke.”

Tori froze, her hand in the middle of pushing the knife down. “Why do you want to talk about him?”

Really, he didn’t _want_ to know. It was bad enough to know that he was a substitute for a dead person. Adam wasn’t sure he could handle knowing all of the ways he didn’t live up to him. But the curiosity was burning him alive. “I want to know.”

Tori set the knife to the side, careful not to look at it. Her hands gripped the table so tight her knuckles turned white. Breathing deeply, she collected her thoughts. “I don’t pretend that Luke was a perfect person. I haven’t been able to do that in a long time. The gods… some of them are nice sometimes, like dad can be, but most of them just see us as playthings. Luke, especially, hated them. Because of that, he made a lot of bad choices, and those choices led to a lot of death and pain. But he only did what he thought was right. Every death or drop of blood was for the greater good in his mind. I always agreed with what he said, even if I didn’t agree with his actions.

“But that’s what he _did_. What he was… Luke was a thousand things. He was passionate and smart. Angry and loving. A loyal traitor. He loved his family, his brothers and sisters, but he left them because he thought that what he was doing was more important.”

“Did he leave you?” Adam’s asked, noting the quiet, careful way she said that part.  

Tori stopped talking and stared at her hands, unable to face Adam. “For a while. He left me at camp so he could fight his _glorious_ _rebellion_.” She spit the words out with an anger she didn’t know she had. “Oh, he left me a way to contact him, and I joined him eventually. But he did. Luke left me.

“But he did care about me,” she said suddenly, like she needed to remind herself, “Too much, maybe. Did you know I died once?” Adam stared at her with wide eyes. “It’s true. And if I had stayed dead, Luke might have gone back to camp. Long story, but that’s what you need to know about it. But Luke couldn’t accept that, so he found a way to bring me back. He was very considerate that way.” _He was very selfish that way_.

Tori paused for a moment, and Adam asked, “Why did you two get together? Really?”

Tori thought about it before saying, “I guess because we were so alike. We were angry and bitter and we didn’t have anyone else. We just sort of… clung to each other. A part of me died with Luke. I don’t know if it was the worst part or the best, but it was definitely one of the two.” Tori stopped then, unable to speak past the lump in her throat of the tears in her eyes.

The two of them sat in silence before Tori pushed the plate of fruit over to him and left.

* * *

Adam went to bed somehow feeling worse than he already had.

He should have known better than to ask Tori about Luke.

 _But I needed to know_ , he thought. _Or I wanted to_. No, that wasn’t it. He _did_ want to know, in that the curiosity had been eating him alive. But he’d dreaded knowing, hated hearing about all the ways he didn’t measure up to Luke. What he got was even worse than what he’d expected. He could see the anger in Tori’s eyes, feel her grief in the way her voice trembled. He was an idiot, thinking he was in love with someone he’d only known for a few days.

It had seemed so romantic in his head; Tori had come in like an angel from heaven to save him and his mom and kill the monsters. He didn’t question why she was there since he thought she was tracking the monsters. He didn’t even care that he was the damsel in distress in this story. Well _now_ he did, but right now he was upset about everything.

He ate a few pieces of fruit before sighing and pushing the plate away. He headed back to his room, waving lazily at Cas before going to lay down in the small guest room. He was exhausted and fell asleep before his head even touched the pillow.

When Adam opened his eyes again, he was sitting in a white and gold room with Baroque style-art on the walls. In front of him was a table with a basket of burgers along with a few soda cans. When he looked around, he saw a balding man in a black suit standing near him, smiling.

“Hi, Adam,” the man said, stepping forward, “I’m Zachariah. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He held out his hand, which Adam reluctantly took.

“‘Zachariah’?” Adam repeated, realizing that this was one of the angels Castiel was worried about. He looked around the room for any possible weapons of exits, but Zachariah just laughed.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you. In fact, I want to help you. Zachariah took a seat across from Adam. “Have the Winchesters explained what’s happening to you?” Adam didn’t say anything. “I’m going to take that as a ‘no’.”

“They did,” Adam told him reluctantly.

“Good. That makes my job easier.” Zachariah’s smile slipped when he realized that Adam was refusing to look at him. “Look at me, Adam. This is important.” Adam looked at him with a guarded expression. Zachariah smiled again. “Lucifer is out of his cage and on Earth. He’s probably somewhere wreaking havoc right now.”

“Then why don’t you handle him?” Adam challenged.

Zachariah sighed sadly. “I wish we could, but the only one powerful enough to defeat Lucifer is Michael.”

“From what I heard, Lucifer could kill Michael.”

“He _could_ , but Michael is older and more powerful than Lucifer. He’ll win, but only if they fight! If they don’t, then Lucifer will slowly destroy the planet until there’s nothing anyway can do to stop him!”

“And that’s why you need Dean,” Adam said quietly.

“No. We don’t need Dean. We need _you_.” Adam scoffed, thinking of Tori. “I mean it, Adam. You can be Michael’s vessel.”

“Yeah? And why would I want to do that?”

Zachariah stared at him with that creepy smile of his. “No doubt your brothers have told you that if Michael and Lucifer fight, a lot of people will die. Millions, probably billions. But if they don’t, then _everyone_ will die.”

Adam thought silently for a moment, staring at the table in front of him as though it held the answers to the universe. He wondered what Tori would want him to do, then shoved the thought out of his mind.

“What do you need me to do?”

* * *

Dean woke up when Castiel started shaking him. “Get up, Dean.”

Dean snorted and blinked at him. “Cas? What’s wrong?”

“Adam’s gone.” Cas turned and marched to the hallway, charging into Victoria’s room. Dean heard yelling. Angry at first, then confused and upset.

With a growing sense of dread, Dean sat up and started to wake Sam. Sam mumbled something about tacos before starting awake. “What happened?”

“Adam’s gone,” Dean told him, standing up in time for Cas to reenter the room.

“What?” Sam looked at Cas. “What’s going on? Where’s Adam?”

Tori came out of her room just in time to hear Sam’s last question. “Yeah, I want to know that too.”

“Zachariah has him.”

Tori stared at him in horror. “How did that happen?”

“Zachariah must have spoken to him in his sleep.”

Tori shuddered, but it was Dean that spoke. “So he just _left_? How could he do that?!”

Castiel started to answer, but was stopped by Tori’s screaming. “Where were you?!” Tori yelled angrily. She stormed over to him until their faces were only inches apart. “ _Where were you?!”_

Castiel backed up uncomfortably. “I left last night to try to find out where Death would be. We still need his ring.”

Tori was unappeased. “You should have been here, you could have stopped him!”

“Hey, he didn’t know what was gonna happen!” Dean insisted, forcing himself in between Tori and Cas.

“He’s an angel! He should have been able to do _something_!”

“It’s not his fault the kid left!”

“Well it’s _someone’s_ fault!”

Cas gently pushed Dean to the side so that he was facing Tori again. “I know where Adam is.”

“Where is he?” Sam asked, hoping to avoid a fight.

“He’s in Van Nuys. The angels are keeping him in — what did you call it Dean? — their ‘heavenly waiting room’.”

”Great,” Dean said, “Let’s go. Cas, fly us out—”

“No,” Tori said, “I don’t want to be around you, I don’t want you to touch me, _I don’t even want to look at you!_ ” Tori was shouting now. “ _Get out!_ You are no longer welcome here, now _leave_!”

Cas left so quickly, that Tori was still yelling by the time he was gone. Dean and Sam were still there, and now Dean looked at her angrily. “Oh, _great_ job Vicky! Now how are we supposed to get to Adam?!”

“First of all, don’t call me Vicky, bitch. And don’t worry, I’ll handle it.”

Tori disappeared into her room for a few minutes. When she came back, she had a quiver full of arrows slung over her back, a sword at her waist, and a dagger in the sheath around her thigh. Her hair rested in careful braids around her head. “I talked to my dad. He said he’d give us a ride, but we have to be on the roof when the sun rises.”

She walked past Dean and Sam to the door and went outside. Dean followed quickly after her and asked, “Why do we have to be outside? Who’s your dad?”

Tamping down her irritation for now, Tori told him, “My dad’s Apollo, the god of the sun. He’s going to give us a ride in his chariot.”

“Is that safe?” Sam asked.

Tori made her way to the elevator. “Probably. I know a couple of people who went with him and survived. Then again, they _were_ demigods.” They got into the elevator with Tori seeming casual while Sam and Dean wondered if it was too late to pick out a good funeral plot.

They reached the private roof after only a few moments. There were a few wrought-iron tables and chairs, but for the most part it was empty. Tori was surprised her dad hadn’t done anything with the space before realizing he probably wanted it for landing. It had been almost half an hour to sunrise when they woke up, and it didn’t take long for the light to touch them. There was a burst of light and warmth near them, and Sam and Dean covered their eyes. The light died down quickly, and when they looked again, they saw a blond man standing next to a red convertible that was glowing from the heat.

The man smiled at them — of rather, at _Tori_. “Hey mini-me!”

Tori winced. “I told you not to call me that. It’s bad enough when you do it with Will. At least he looks like you.”

“I could look like you if—”

“No! That was weird enough last time.”

Apollo shrugged. “If you say so. Is everyone ready to go?” He turned back to the car without waiting for an answer. Tori followed him, used to his lack of patience by now. Her dad looks at her, seeing the weariness in her worry line and the fear in her eyes. “Hey, Tori, do you want to drive?”

Tori shook her head, remembering the last time she tried to drive and how it ended. She still wasn’t sure if it was her of Dan who’d been screaming. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Sure it is! Come on, it’ll make you feel better.”

Tori reluctantly got into the driver’s seat. In the back, Dean and Sam slid into the seats warily. Tori wondered if they wished there was an safety handlebar. Or seat belts.

Trying to remember what few driving lessons she’d had, Tori pressed down on one of the pedals… only to accidentally floor it. The car flew into one of the short walls surrounding the roof, impacting it with a loud bang. Luckily, the sun chariot was indestructible, and no one was hurt (unless you count Dean and Sam, who yelled when they were thrown into the seats in front of them. Tori decided not to count them).

That didn’t seem to reassure Apollo, though. “Okay, maybe that wasn’t such a good idea.” He and Tori switched seats and Apollo started driving. Tori hoped he didn’t puke in the car. Dad might kick him out while they were flying.

“Is he okay?” Tori asked Sam, who turned around to look at them when she heard Dean desperately grab the door handle. She hoped the child lock was on.

Sam grimaced at Dean. “He doesn’t like flying.”

Tori gave him a sympathetic look and tried not to laugh. Apollo pushed a button to put up the car’s top, transforming the convertible into an ordinary car. “Better?”

Dean nodded, still not letting go of the handle. “Perfect.” Tori let out a tiny snigger at his wide-eyes and white knuckles.

“Great!” Apollo said, not seeming to notice Dean’s high-pitched voice, “Where do you want me to drop you off?”

“Van Nuys, California,” Sam said.

“That’s on the other side of the country. It’s gonna take a while.”

“We have time,” Tori said, ignoring Sam’s scowl. She honestly wasn’t sure how much time they had, but the trip would take three hours at most, and there was no reason to believe that the angels would kill Adam. It was a small price to pay to not have to put up with Castiel, and she felt better about asking her dad for help than an angel.

Dean and Sam soon fell asleep, having woken up too early to be rested. Tori wasn’t as tired, and was happy to sit with her dad in silence.

So of course he started talking.  

Apollo checked to make sure Sam and Dean were still asleep were out before looking to Tori. “You okay, Victoria?”

She shrugged listlessly. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well you know I’m not the most observant person in the world,” he ignored her laugh, “but even I realize that there’s something wrong with you.”

Tori didn’t respond. They sat in silence before she told him, “This isn’t Castiel’s fault. It’s mine.”

“What? No it’s not.”

“It is,” she said quietly, defeat in her voice, “Adam left because of what I did, because I… _used_ him.” Tori sat back in her seat and stared out the windshield sadly.

“Wow,” Apollo said, “And people say I have a big head.”

Tori whipped around to look at him. “What?”

“Victoria, let me make this clear. This was not your fault. This happened because Adam was an idiot who trusted angels. And the angels did it because they care more about some supposed destiny than people.” He turned to stare into her eyes. He seemed older than usual. Like a god instead of a teenager or twenty-something. “Tori, you’re not Atlas. You don’t have to hold the world on your shoulders.”

Tori winced at the word ‘Atlas’. She thought of Luke, of the way his sand-blond hair had turned white after holding up the sky. She’d never seen him holding it, but it was easy to imagine after seeing Percy and Atlas do it. Without thinking about it, she replaced Luke with Adam and felt the tears begin to build up in her eyes.

“No,” Tori said, “But someone has to.”

* * *

Castiel was there when Apollo dropped them off at the warehouse. Tori growled in frustration. “What are you doing here?”

“Adam’s inside,” Castiel told her, “And there are five angels inside. You can’t fight them.”

“Cas,” Dean said, “Neither can you! Five angels on your own, that’s suicide!”

“I have a plan,” the angel said calmly. From one of his pockets, he took out a box cutter and started to undo his tie.

A few minutes later, Castiel went into the warehouse and confronted the angels. The first one attacked him head on, and he killed it with his angel blade. The others surrounded him cautiously. “Come on!” he shouted at them, “Come and get me!”

The four angels rushed him, blades raised. When they were too close, Castiel ripped his shirt open, revealing the angel banishing sigil carved into his chest. He slammed his hand onto it before it was too late, and white light filled the room, banishing all five of them.

The others saw the light and carefully entered the building. Tori and Dean agreed to take the door closest to them while Sam looked around for another. Tori saw Adam as soon as she was in the room. He was laying on the floor in pain, blood flowing freely from his mouth. Tori rushed to his side, pulling him up by the arm. “Are you okay?”

“You came for me,” Adam said, almost falling on her. Dean took his other arm, and together they started walking him to the door.

Tori smiled at him. “It’s kind of what I do.”

“It’s a trap,” he gasped out.

“We figured,” Dean said. The three of them stopped in their tracks when they saw Zachariah.

“Dean, Tori,” he said, smirking, “did you really think it would be that easy?”

Looking behind him, Dean asked, “Did you?”

Sam ran at Zachariah from behind with an angel blade raised high, but it was no use. The angel knocked him to the side and then threw him backwards so that he landed on some sort of gold and black gate.

“Sam!” Dean cried.

Zachariah turned back to them. “Do you know what I’ve learned from this experience? Patience.” He twisted his hand, and Adam fell to the ground, dark blood gushing from his mouth.

“Adam!” Tori shouted. She moved to help him, but Zachariah waved her away, throwing her into a wall and holding her there.

“You know, I really don’t like you,” Zachariah told her, “It’s a shame I can’t hurt you the way I can them. But your dad really wouldn’t like that, and I think we should keep it at one war at a time.”

Tori glared at him hatefully. “Bite me, feathers.”

Before Zachariah could respond, Dean demanded, “Let them go, you son of a bitch!”

“You know,” Zachariah said casually, “I thought I was downsized for sure, and for us a firing,” he laughed, “pretty damn literal.” Dean glared at him, but he just shook his head and sat down. “But I should’ve trusted the boss man. It’s all playing out just like he said.”

Dean looked down at Adam, who was practically convulsing. Every cough brought up more blood onto the pristine floor.

“You, me, your hemorrhaging brothers and Adam’s girlfriend, for some reason.” Zachariah twisted his fist again, and Sam, who’d started to stand up, started coughing up blood too. “You’re finally ready, right?” Zachariah wasn’t smiling anymore. Dean looked at each of his brothers with a scared expression, then back to Zachariah. “You know there’s not other choice, there’s never been a choice.”

“Stop it,” Dean demanded, “Stop it right now!”

“In exchange for what?” Zachariah asked coldly.

“Dammit, Zachariah,” Dean said quietly, looking tired. For the first time, Tori felt bad about being so cold to him. “Stop it, please.” Dean took in a breath, realizing what he had to say. “I’ll do it.”

“I’m sorry,” Zechariah said, raising his hand to his ear mockingly, “What was that?”

“Okay, yes,” Dean said, looking at Sam, who was staring at him and shaking his head, “The answer is yes.”

“Dean,” Sam said.

Zachariah started to turn to Sam, but Dean shouted at him, “Do you hear me?! Call Michael down, you bastard.” Tori stared at him with a look of terror and sadness, wincing when his voice broke.

“How do I know you’re not lying?”

“Do I look like I’m lying?”

Zachariah stared at him then turned away, a smile tugging at his mouth. He started chanting in Enochian.

“Dean,” Tori said quietly, “Don’t do it. It’s not worth it.”

Dean looked at Zachariah, who ignore the, before looking at her angrily. “What do you know about it?”

Tori lowered her eyes so that she was looking at Adam, who stared at the two of them. “I know that sometimes we do things, terrible things, because we want to protect the people we love. I know that sometimes people die because of it, and then we wish we could take it back.” She looked at Dean. “Don’t do this, Dean. Fix it before you can’t anymore.”

Dean looked at her, then Sam, who was clutching his stomach in pain. The brothers stared at each other. After a moment, Dean gave him a small smile and a wink.

Zachariah stopped chanting. “He’s coming.”

Dean smirked at the angel. “Of course, I have a few conditions.”

Zachariah looked at him sharply. “What?”

“A few people whose safety you have to guarantee before I say yes.”

“Sure, fine, make a list,” Zachariah said nonchalantly.

“But most of all,” Dean said, “Michael can’t have me, until he disintegrates _you_.”

Around them, the room shook. “What did you say?”

“I said,” Dean stepped closer to him, “before Michael gets one piece of this sweet ass, he has to turn you into a piece of charcoal.”

Zachariah laughed, the room shaking all harder than before. “You really think Michael’s gonna go for that?”

“Who’s more important now? You?” Dean smirked. “Or me?”

Zachariah moved closer to Dean and grabbed him by the collar. Their faces were only inches apart, and Tori could barely hear them. “You listen to me,” he said quietly You are nothing but a _maggot_ inside a worm’s ass. Do you know who I am? After I deliver you to Michael?”

“Expendable?” Tori asked, smirking.

Dean smiled at her. “My thoughts exactly.”

Zachariah scoffed. “Michael’s not gonna kill _me_!”

“Maybe not,” Dean said. Tori saw him slide a silver sword out of his pocket. “But I am.” He brought the sword up and stabbed it through the bottom of Zachariah’s head so that it went through his mouth. Zachariah cried out in pain, but it was no use. His eyes and mouth turned white with light before the energy from his death pushed Dean to the ground with Adam. Tori, no longer having Zachariah to hold her up, fell to the floor. From here, she could see Zachariah’s body laying down. His wings had left huge ash imprints on the floor and wall.

Before anyone could move, a white light and ringing sound filled the room. Dean and Tori stood up and grabbed Adam by the arms. “Are you okay?” Dean asked him. Adam nodded, staring at the light, and Dean went to pull Sam up. Tori grabbed Adam and started to pull him to the door. Dean turned to look at them “Come on, move it!”

Dean, Sam, and Tori made it outside, but just as Adam started to come through, the door slammed shut. Adam pounded on the door. “ _Tori, Dean, help!_ ”

Dean dragged Sam away, but Tori pounded on the door before slamming herself against it, but all she did was hurt her scarred shoulder. “ _It won’t open!_ ” Adam shouted.

Tori tried again, but the light was shining through the door now, and it made the door too hot to touch. “ _Hold on, Adam!_ ” She looked at Dean desperately, only to realize that he didn’t know what to do either.

They backed away as the light got brighter. “ _Just hold on!_ ” Dean shouted, but it was too late. Tori could feel it. “ _Adam, can you hear me?!_ ” The light got brighter, brighter even than her dad’s chariot, then stopped and died down again. “ _Adam!_ ” Dean wrenched the door open, but Tori ignored him and slid down the wall, defeated.

Inside the room there was only old filing cabinets and broken glass. Dean and Sam stared at each other in realization. Tori buried her face into her knees and screamed.


	6. Well, I like diamonds, but this ring is nice too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of the dialogue from this chapter is from season 5, episode 21 of Supernatural, "Two Minutes to Midnight."

Not knowing what else to do, Tori left with Sam and Dean. They had to wait a day until Apollo came back around to California, and after that it was a long drive (flight?) to New York. While they waited, Tori made Iris Messaged Will. To her surprise, Viola was already at with him at camp.

“Vi, what are you doing?” Tori asked, grinning at her little sister.

Smiling, Viola told her, “My grandmommy’s sick, so my mom said I had to come to camp now so she could make sure he’s okay.”

“I hope he’s okay,” Tori said, “But I’m glad to see you!”

“Yeah! And when you get back tomorrow, we’re gonna go canoe on the lake, and we’re gonna stay up late at night — mommy never let’s me stay up late — and we can have _fresh_ strawberries!”

Tori smiled, letting Viola ramble on for a few minutes, but her face fell when she remembered. “That sounds like a lot of fun sweetie, but I’m not gonna be there.

Viola stopped talking and stared at her sister with wide eyes. “What? But why not?”

Tori tried to keep her face calm so Viola wouldn’t see how stressed she was. “Well, there’s some really bad monsters that I have to fight, and I’m not sure how long it’s going to take.”

“You’re not gonna be here?” she asked loudly, voice trembling. Behind her, Will had a similar shocked expression, mouthing ‘what’. “When will you come back?” Viola asked.

“I really don’t know. It’ll probably only be a few days, but it might be a couple of weeks.”

“Oh,” the girl said, looking down at the ground.

“Hey, don’t worry,” Tori said, smiling at her sister reassuringly, “I swear when I get back that we’ll do all those things and more.”

Viola stared at her. “But what if you don’t come back?”

Tori tried to reassure her, but her voice caught in her throat. Finally she admitted, “I don’t know.”

* * *

After only two hours of sleep, Tori was up and ready to leave at six, and Apollo arrived soon after. When Tori got in the car, Apollo tried to get her to talk about Adam, but she went to sleep. When she woke up, Sam and Dean were sleeping. Apollo saw that she was awake and rolled his eyes.

“ _Now_ you’re awake,” he grumbled, “Those two were arguing for ten days before they shut up, and I had to suffer through it alone!”

Tori yawned and peered at her dad through half-lidded eyes. “I hope they weren’t _actually_ arguing for ten days, or else I was in a coma and the god of medicine didn’t do anything about it.”

Apollo scoffed. “Come on, even I’m not that absent-minded.”

“That’s not the word I’d use to describe you.”

Apollo nodded, satisfied. “Exactly.” He thought about what she said and furrowed his eyebrows. “Wait a minute, what would you—”

“Where are we?” Tori interrupted him.

Apollo eyed her, but said, “We’re about halfway across the Atlantic Ocean. We’ll be in New York in a couple of hours.”

Tori let out a sigh of relief. “Good.”

“Do you know what you’re going to do when you get back?”

“I have no idea. Do you think I should tell Chiron about what’s going on?”

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea, Victoria. We’ve always tried to stay out of Heaven’s affairs, and they leave us alone. It’s a good system.”

“It _was_ a good system,” Tori said irritably, “Until Heaven decided it wanted to fuck everyone else over.”

“Yeah, it’s not really the same anymore, is it?”

Tori’s eyes turned bitter, unable to indulge her father in the banter they usually enjoyed these days. “It’s Dean’s fault,” she said angrily, her words dripping venom, “They wanted him to be Michael’s vessel, not Adam. It should have been him.”

Apollo looked at her worriedly. “Tori, it shouldn’t have been _anyone_. It’s no more Dean’s fault than it is yours.”

Tori looked away from him.

“Did I forget to mention that it isn’t your fault?”

 _Just like me to want to throw someone else under the bus to keep my boyfriend safe_ , Tori thought. “Can we not talk about that right now? Are you going to tell the other Olympians what’s going on?”

“Tori...they already know.”

Tori stared at him, her expression changing from confused to stony comprehension. “I see. And they’ve decided not to do anything about it?”

“There’s nothing we can do…”

“Really? There is not a single thing that an entire _pantheon_ of trigger-happy gods can do?!”

“Tori, you don’t understand—”

“Oh, I understand! I understand that you’d rather stay holed up in your little kingdom in the clouds and let everyone else die than actually get up off your asses and _do something!_ ”

“Would you just calm down—”

“What’s going on?” Dean asked, waking up.

“SHUT UP!” Tori yelled at him. Feeling her anger began to deflate, Tori slumped back in her seat and turned to look out the window. “Just drive, Apollo.”

Apollo looked like he was about to say something, but just looked out the windshield and kept driving.

After a few hours, Apollo lowered the car to the apartment rooftop. Dean woke Sam up while Tori got out of the car, slamming the door behind her. Before she could storm off, Apollo rolled down the window to shout, “Tori?”

She whipped around to look at him. “What?!”

Apollo started to say something, then stopped, shaking his head. Finally, he said, “Go to Chicago to find Thanatos. If anyone knows how to save Adam, it’s him.” A beat passed, and he added, “And he’s the final horseman. You’ll need his ring.” With that, the car returned to the sky before disappearing from sight completely.

* * *

Tori took a shower before getting dressed in the clothes she found in the closet. She filled a duffel bag with several shirts, paints, some underwear, toiletries, and an extra pair of shoes. When she was done, she joined Sam and Dean in the living room.

“Are you guys ready to go?” she asked.

Sam frowned in confusion. “Where are we going?”

Tori looked at him in disbelief. “Didn’t you hear my dad? Thanatos is in Chicago!”

“Thanatos? You mean Death?” Sam blinked sleepily.

Dean rolled his eyes. “He’s still kind of asleep. I’ll drive.”

It was a 12 hour drive to Chicago. Dean took the first shift while Sam slept spread out in the back seats. Tori took the passenger side, calling Bobby for Dean when he said that they needed to tell him what was going on. Dean spoke quickly, only giving the necessary details. “So please tell us you have actual good news.”

“Chicago is about to be wiped off the map,” Bobby said, “Storm of the millennium. Sets off a daisy chain of natural disasters. Three million people are gonna die.”

Tori frowned. “I don’t think your friend understands the definition of good news.”

Dean sighed in exasperation. “At least we know why Death’s going to be there.”

By the time the drive was halfway over, Dean looked like he was about to fall asleep. They woke up Sam and made him drive the remainder of the trip while Dean slept in the back and Tori took a nap in the passenger seat. She didn’t sleep for long though. She kept having a dream where Luke was with her, and the angels killed him as Luke turned into Adam. She woke up sweaty and shaking, but ignored Sam when he asked what was wrong.

It was evening when they reached the city. The sky was dark with clouds. Most people seemed to know about the storm, as the streets were completely deserted.

Dean and Tori argued about which of them would go to see Death.

“I’m going,” Dean said stubbornly, “I’m Michael’s vessel, I’m the one who got us into this mess in the first place.”

Tori scoffed. “No way. I’m going. Apollo told me where Thanatos was, not you. And besides, I need to ask him how to save Adam.”

“I can do that!”

“No, it has to be me!”

“Why?”

“Because–” Tori stopped, her breath caught in her throat. _Because I can’t lose another person I care about._ “Because I’m a demigod. If Thanatos tries to hurt me, the gods won’t stand for it.” That was true in part. The gods hated being insulted, and there were few things more insulting than killing their children. Whether or not they’d be able to do anything to _Thanatos_ was a different story. But Tori held her head high and looked Dean straight in the eyes.  
  
Dean and Tori stared each other down until finally Dean sighed. “Fine, go.”

Tori set off down the road, not entirely sure where she was going. Her feet seemed to move without her, and she was drawn to a small pizzeria. She opened the door.

In the middle of the room was a small round table with a pizza on top. Seated at the table was a thin, pale man with black hair and a gaunt face. He didn’t look up when she came in, but he said, “Hello.”

Tori didn’t answer. She sat across from the man. He looked up at her with dark, knowing eyes. “I understand you’ve come to take my ring.”

“Ask for,” Tori said, “If you allow it.”

Thanatos looked at her appraisingly. “You’re more respectful then the one I was expecting.”

“Dean?”

The horseman nodded slightly. “Him. No respect for the natural order. He dies, he get’s back up. It’s insulting.” He looked at her intently. “You died once. I remember.”

“I didn’t mean to,” Tori said awkwardly.

“Who ever does?” He returned his attention to the pizza. “Though I suppose it's not your fault that Luke decided to bring you back.”

Tori’s heart wrenched when she heard Luke’s name, but Thanatos continued speaking, so she forced herself to stayed focused. “I’m going to lend you my ring.”

Tori’s eyes widened in surprise. “You are? Just like that?”

Thanatos looked at her again with his piercing eyes, and Tori resisted the urge to run screaming. “This is one little planet in one tiny solar system in a galaxy that’s barely out of its diapers. I’m old, Victoria. Very old. And yet Lucifer has me bound to him, some unseemly little spell. He has me where he wants, when he wants. That's why I couldn't go to the Winchesters, I had to wait for you all to catch up. He made me his weapon. Hurricanes, floods, raising the dead. I'm more powerful than you can process, and I'm enslaved to a bratty child having a tantrum.”

Tori resisted the urge to smile at that. “I hope you don’t mind my asking, but how old are you?

“As old as God. Maybe older. Neither of us can remember anymore. Life, death, chicken, egg – regardless, at the end, I’ll reap Him too.”

Head spinning, Tori’s mouth gaped in shock. “God? You’ll reap _God_?”

“Oh yes. God will die too. Even your gods will die, when the west either forgets them or is gone itself.”

Tori’s heart ached at the thought of it. It was what Luke had wanted once, but she couldn’t imagine a world so old and ruined that even the gods were forgotten. Without saying anything else, Thanatos took off his ring and handed it to her. She took it warily, putting it into her pocket before zipping it shut. “Thank you.”

The horseman looked at her intently. “That’s not all you want to say, is it?” Tori shook her head. “Let me guess,” he said, “It’s about Michael’s new vessel.”

Tori nodded. “Adam. Adam Milligan. Is he okay?”

“He’s not dead, if that’s what you mean, though I don’t know how that being a vessel will help him.”

Feeling her throat clench, Tori asked, “Is there a way to force Michael out of him?”

“There is. An angel needs a human’s consent to possess them. If Adam withdraws his consent at any time, Michael will be forced back to Heaven.”

Tori laughed in relief. “Thank you, that’s wonderful—”

“However,” he said, “it won’t be easy. Right now Adam’s consciousness is tucked away in the corner of his mind. His body is not his own. If you want him to be free again, you’ll have to get through to him, make him hear you.”

“So it’s possible?”

“It won’t be easy,” he intoned.

“But he can do it, right?” Tori asked hopefully.

Thanatos shrugged. “Possibly.”

Tori sighed in relief. “That’s all I need.” Looking around the restaurant, she asked, “What’ll happen to Chicago?”

Thanatos looked around at the restaurant and shrugged. “I suppose it can stay. I like the pizza.”


	7. Apocalypse Now. Like, RIGHT Now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part of the following dialogue takes place during season 5, episode 22 of Supernatural, “Swan Song”.

Tori dreamed that night. She was standing in between Luke and Adam again while the hole in the ground sucked Adam in. She tried to go to him, but Luke grabbed her, tighter than before, and wrenched her away. Adam was sucked in, and Tori sobbed. Luke wrapped his arms around her, whispering comforting words in her ear while she clutched his shirt in grief.  

She woke up to the sound of someone pounding on the motel door. She jackknifed up, grabbing her sword from the nightstand.

“Tori!” Dean called, “Get up, we got to go!”

Tori sighed when she realized it was just Dean. She quickly got dressed, making sure she had her weapons and the ring and necklace that Luke had left her. She checked to make sure the pendant was over her heart. It was a silly thing, but it made her feel better, more sure of herself.

When she was done, she grabbed her bag and joined the brothers in the car. Dean glared at her in annoyance. “What took you so long?”

“I was asleep,” she said, not bothering to try to sound angry. She rubbed her necklace nervously, wondering what her dream meant, if anything. “Where do you want to go?”

“Sioux Falls,” Sam said. “It’s in South Dakota.”

Tori frowned. “Why are we going there?”

“To regroup, figure out our next move,” Dean said, starting the car.

“And we’re doing that in South Dakota _because_?”

“We know a hunter there,” Sam explained, “Bobby. Sort of a family friend.”

They didn’t talk much after that, and Tori slept for a little while since Dean had woken her up so early. When she woke up again, Sam was driving and Dean was on the phone. Tori kicked Sam’s seat to make him look at her. Sam glanced at her in annoyance. “What?”

“Who’s he talking to?” she asked, looking at Dean. He gave her an annoyed glance, but returned his attention to whoever was talking.

“Cas,” Sam told her.

Tori sat up. “He’s alive? Dean, turn on the speaker!”

“Tori, shut up!”

But Tori kicked his seat until he obeyed, and Cas’s voice rang out through the car. “Dean? Are you still there?”

“Yeah, I’m here, Cas.”

“Me too!” Tori said, “What happened to you, angel?”

Cas took a moment to process Tori’s voice before saying, “Apparently, after Van Nuys, I suddenly appeared, bloody and unconscious, on a shrimping boat off Delacroix. I'm told it upset the sailors.”

Tori laughed then, a loud, _grateful_ sound that at least _something_ was alright for once. “That’s wonderful, Castiel. How are you getting here? Do you need us to get you?” 

“No, that’s alright. I have some money, I can find a way back.”

Dean and Cas argued for over ten minutes, but in the end, Cas succeeded in assuring Dean that he would be fine. They kept driving until they reached Bobby’s house. Tori helped Dean and Sam bring in their stuff. When she walked into the house, someone threw water in her face. She fell back against the door, sputtering. “What— _what the fuck was that?!_ ”

A middle-aged man with a trucker’s hat and a beard was in front of her in a wheelchair, holding a metal flask. “Holy water,” he said, “She’s good.”

Tori stared at Sam and Dean, who stood behind Bobby. “What the hell?!”

Sam smiled apologetically. “Sorry about that. Bobby always checks to make sure visitors aren’t possessed.”

“Well _Bobby_ can go fuck himself!”

“That seems a bit overboard,” Bobby said, wheeling away. Sam got her a hand towel to drive off her face. Tori snatched it away and scrubbed her face off.

They settled into the house and met in the living room to discuss their game plan. Bobby listed several places he thought Lucifer might be before Dean interrupted him.

“Detroit,” Dean said, “That’s where he said he would be.”

Tori frowned. “Lucifer? What, do you have him on speed-dial?”

Dean hesitated. “No, it was more like an...alternate universe, or something.”

“And he said he’d be in Detroit?” Tori asked, deciding to leave the idea of alternate universes for when she didn’t have a headache.

Dean nodded. “Basically, yeah.”

“Huh. I knew there was something horribly wrong with that place. Alright, when do we leave?”

Dean sighed tiredly. “As soon as Cas gets here.”

* * *

Victoria slept fitfully that night. The dream came to her several times, but she would wake up as soon as it began. She gave up after five hours and spent some time sharpening her sword and dagger. When she was done with that, she checked the time and realized that it was after breakfast at camp. She took out a golden drachma with the idea of sending an Iris Message to say - what? That she didn't know when she’d come home? That she might die, that they _all_ might die?

Not knowing what else to do, she sent Dan a text telling him she was okay and asked him to pass on the message.

She went to the kitchen to get some breakfast. Dean was sitting at the kitchen table, drinking from a cup of coffee and looking anxiously out the window. “Hey,” Tori said, getting some juice from the fridge. “The angel’s not back yet?”

Dean shook his head. “He said he'd be here today.”

“Relax, it's still early.”

Dean sighed irritably. “I know that, it's just…I'm worried about him.”

Tori nodded sympathetically. “Yeah, I know what it's like to worry that the person you love won't come back to you.”

Dean choked on some coffee and sputtered helplessly. “Victoria, I'm not...Cas and I aren't a couple.”

“You haven't told him how you feel?”

“No! I mean,” Dean waved his hands around, trying to think if what to say. “I'm straight.”

Tori laughed. “Sure, Dean. I believe that as much as I believe Bert and Ernie are ‘just friends’.”

Dean tried to say something, but Tori had already moved onto making a bowl of cereal, still chuckling. Dean sighed and gave up. Tori down sat across from him and started eating. Dean looked at her awkwardly. “So...how are you feeling? You know, about Adam?”

Tori froze with her spoon halfway to her mouth. “I’m fine.”

Dean gave her an _Oh, really?_ look. “Of course. I mean, your boyfriend was just possessed by an archangel that wants to kill Lucifer and destroy half the planet in the process. Why _wouldn’t_ you be fine?”

“Well, it's not like it’s the first time one of my boyfriends was possessed by someone that wanted to destroy the world.” Tori put her spoon down and stared out the window, contemplating her life choices.

Dean stared at her. “Really?”

She nodded. “Really.”

“That’s fucked up.”

Tori shrugged. “I have a type.”

* * *

Castiel arrived at Bobby’s house at noon. Sam and Tori watched as Dean went out to greet him, trying and failing not to run.

“They’re adorable,” Tori said as they watched the reunion.

Sam frowned. “What? No, they’re not...it’s complicated…”

Tori thought, _Bitch, please_ , but decided to let it go. She looked at Sam. He seemed alright. Calm, collected. Not as nervous as someone who was getting ready to jump into Hell _should_ look. “You don’t have to do it, you know.” Sam turned from Dean and Cas to look at her. “I wouldn’t hold it against you. I mean, it’s literally _Hell_. We can find another way.”

Sam shook his head. He looked...resigned. And oddly peaceful. “If there were any other way, we’d have found it by now. Besides. I started this. I should be the one to end it.”

His words echoed in her mind. _Luke started a war_ , she thought. “Whatever you say, Sam.” _He ended it, too._ “Whatever you say.”

* * *

Dean and Sam were speaking in Bobby’s junkyard. Tori didn’t know what they were talking about. She was alone on the porch, not knowing what else to do. She didn’t look up when she heard footsteps, or when the man stood next to her.

“Mind if I sit?” Apollo asked.

Tori shrugged. “Go ahead. I don’t care what you do.”

Apollo sat down awkwardly, not quite sure what to say. “You’re my daughter, Victoria.”

“Nice of you to remember.”

Apollo winced, but didn’t argue. “I just...I wanted to say goodbye in case something happened.”

“Did you have a vision? A prophecy?”

Apollo shook his head. “No, it’s just a feeling. Plus, no one really expects an apocalypse to go well.”

Tori laughed bitterly. “I guess not.”

The two sat in silence. Finally, Tori asked him, “Am I going to die tomorrow?” That wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe she’d finally be with Luke. And Adam would go to Heaven without her. The thought made her sad, but also relieved. She was so tired of fighting. Was it too much to ask that she rest?

“I don’t know. I don’t think so.”

Tori nodded, not sure how to feel about that. She almost asked about Adam, but decided she didn’t want to know. She could still save him if she didn’t know.

Tori was still looking out at the junkyard. Sam and Dean were hugging now, and her heart ached at the thought that she might not get to hug any of her brothers or sisters again. She should have hugged them before she left. She should have gone to see them again.

“Goodbye, dad.”

Apollo looked at her sharply in surprise. “Victoria?”

“Promise you’ll tell Dan and the others if I die?”

He nodded. “I will. I swear it on the River Styx.”

Tori didn’t say anything. When she looked to where her father had been, he was gone. She went back inside. Bobby was in the living room, staring at his chair in amazement. “Are you ok—” Her eyes widened when she realized what had happened.

Bobby was standing up on his own, his legs healed. “There was a man here just a second ago. Said he was Apollo.”

Tori stared at him in shock. Then she grinned wildly and hugged the old man. _Well, dad does_ some _things right._

Tori sat in the car with her eyes closed, trying to black out the screams. It was necessary, Castiel said. Sam would need to drink as much demon blood as he could to contain Lucifer. The sound reminded her of being on the _Andromeda_. If she laid back and wrapped her arms around herself, she could imagine it was Luke holding her, assuring her that everything would be alright. It was no more true now than before, and she soon gave up.

The drive to Detroit was a long one, and she and Castiel passed the time by sleeping. It was dark when they got there. Bobby scouted the perimeter, confirming that Lucifer was there. Sam shared goodbyes with him and Cas, which Dean and Tori awkwardly avoided. They were the only ones going with him, and even that had been a fight. She argued with Sam and Dean who thought that she should stay with the others. She didn’t want to. This was her fight now too, and she didn’t want to let them go in alone. But ultimately, they were right. Lucifer had no reason to spay her if he saw her, and she had no reason to be there.

 _Focus on Adam_. She snorted.  _Yeah, cause focusing completely on a guy has always worked out_ so  _well for me._

* * *

They drove until they found the building where the devil was. They got out of the car, and Sam steeled himself, sucking in a breath.

“Okay,” Sam said, straightening his back. “Let’s go.” He marched towards the building with a fierce determination. Dean watched him sadly, and Tori bumped his shoulder to get him to move.

“ _All right!_ ” Sam shouted, waving his arms, “We’re here, you sons of bitches! Come and get it.”

Two demons in black suits came out to greet them. “Hey guys,” Dean said, “Is your father home?”

The demons took them by the arms and forced them inside the dilapidated building. When they got upstairs, they saw him. Lucifer.

He was looking out a window. “Hey guys,” he said, not looking at them, “So nice of you to drop in.” He breathed onto the glass, causing it to fog up and freeze. Ice spread over the window. “Sorry if it’s a bit chilly.” He drew his finger over the glass, drawing a pitchfork. “Most people think I burn hot. It’s actually quite the opposite.”

“Well, I’ll alert the media,” Dean said.

Lucifer’s voice had been calm and relaxed, but when he turned to face the brothers, his skin was sickeningly pale and scarred by red lesions. He took a casual step towards them and clasped his hands together. “Help me understand something, guys. I mean, stomping through my front door is...tad suicidal, don’t you think?”

“We’re not here to fight you,” Sam said, looking ready to fight.

Lucifer looked at Sam. “No. Then why are you?”

“I want to say yes.”

Lucifer tilted his head. “Excuse me?”

Sam closed his eyes and concentrated. There were two bright orange flashes, and the demons fell to the ground, dead.

Lucifer didn’t seem surprised. “Chock-full of ovaltine, are we?”

“You heard me,” Sam said, staring the devil down, “Yes.”

Lucifer gave him a hard, surprised look. “You’re serious?”

Sam and Dean shared a look, terrified, but Sam plunged ahead. “Look,” Sam said, “judgement day is a runaway train, we get it now. We just want off.”

“Meaning?”

“Deal of the century.” Lucifer didn’t seem too interested in what Sam was selling. He looked off to Sam’s side, drawing his finger over his mouth in a ‘hush’ gesture. “I give you a free ride, but when it’s all over, I live, they live, you bring our parents back—”

“Okay, can we please drop the telenovela? I know you have the rings, Sam.”

Sam shook his head lightly, trying to look confused. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Satan had an exasperate look. “The horsemen's rings?” He stepped closer to Sam. “The magic _keys_ to my cage? Ring a bell?”

Dean looked like he was close to falling apart, closing his eyes to steel himself.

Come on, Sam,” Lucifer continued, circling the hunters like cat with a mouse, “I’ve never lied to you, you could at least pay me the same respect.” The brothers turned around to face him, Sam looking angrier than Dean had ever seen him. “It’s okay, I’m not mad.” Looking at his sly smile, Sam believed him. “A wrestling match inside your noggin. I like the idea. Just you and me? One round? No tricks. You win, you jump in the hole. I win,” Lucifer smiled, “Well, then I win.” Sam looked like he might scream or cry. “What do you say, Sam? A fiddle of gold against your soul says I’m better than _yooou_.”

“Sorry, Dean. It doesn’t change anything.”

Dean looked at his brother desperately. “Sam…”

“We don’t have a choice.”

“ _No,_ ” Dean insisted, looking from his brother to Lucifer, but the two had eyes only for each other.

Sam looked Lucifer in the eye. “Yes.”

Lucifer closed his eyes and tilted his head back as he began to glow, a ringing sound filling the room, then the building, growing louder and louder until the entire neighborhood could hear it.

Dean had covered his eyes from the light, but now he looked around desperately. Sam lay on the floor with his eyes closed, looking like he could be asleep. Or dead.

Dean took the keys out of his pocket. He threw them at the nearest wall. They stuck to it like it was a magnet as Dean began chanting in Enochian. The wall broke apart, a huge hole appearing around the rings.

Dean grabbed onto his brother. “Sammy!” Dean shouted.

“Dean!” Sam groaned in pain. “I can feel him! _Oh, God!_ ”

“You gotta go _now!_ ” Dean shouted, pulling his brother up. Finally Sam saw the hole in the wall. “C’mon!” Sam stood up, staring. “Go now, Sammy! _Now!_ ”

Sam pushed away from his brother, forcing himself to the wall. But something...changed. His features shifted, as if a wave had passed over them, and he smiled. Lucifer turned to look at Dean. “I was just messing with you. Sammy’s long gone.”


	8. Light's Victory

They stood outside a TV store, their screens showing one disaster after another. An earthquake, a fire, riots. It was depressing even by Tori’s standards. “What do we do?”

She didn’t know who she was asking, but Castiel was the one who answered, looking so depressed Tori almost wanted to give him a hug. “I suggest we imbibe copious quantities of alcohol and wait for the inevitable blast wave.”

Dean glared at his friend. “Yes, well, thank you, Burkowski, she meant how do we stop it?”

“We don’t. Lucifer will meet Michael on the chosen field and the battle of Armageddon will begin.”

“Where’s that?” Tori demanded.

Castiel sighed. “I don’t know.”

“There has to be something we can do! We can’t just let the world be destroyed!”

“I’m sorry, Victoria. It’s over.”

Dean shook his head and pointed at the angel. “You listen to me you junkless sissy, we are not giving up.” He turned to the older hunter. “Bobby!” Bobby looked away from him, grief traced into every line on his face. Dean’s voice faltered. “Bobby?”

“There was never much hope to begin with. I don’t know what else to do.”

Dean stared at Bobby and then Cas, and slowly lowered his eyes. Enraged, Tori slapped him. “Stop it! We are not giving up, alright? I _refuse_.”

Dean touched his cheek. “ _Ow._ ”

Tori ignored his complaint. “The world is not going to end, got it? It’s not _allowed_ to end.”

“Well what do you expect me to do?!” Dean shouted, his face inches from Tori.

“I DON’T KNOW! But we have to do something! So everyone just shut up and _think_!”

They stared at each other, red-faced and breathing hard. Tori saw the tears gather in his eyes, and sighed, reminding herself that Dean had just lost his brother and now probably wasn’t the best time to be yelling. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have raised my voice.” She turned to the Impala. “I’m going to pray to my dad. Maybe he’ll have a prophecy or vision or something that can help.”

None of them responded as she walked away, her thoughts swirling around her mind. She slid into the backseat of Dean’s car and rested her head against the seat. “Okay. First of all, hi dad, nice to talk to you again. Thank you, for helping Bobby. I really appreciate it, and so does he. I was wondering if you had any advice or premonitions about, you know, the apocalypse that just started.”

The car was silent.

“Should I take that as a ‘no’?”

Apollo apparently wasn’t in the mood to answer prayers. Tori groaned in irritation. “Well, _thanks_ , dad. _Suuuper_ helpful.” She knocked her head against the headrest. Frustrated tears began to cloud her vision. Quietly, her voice breaking, she said, “Luke? Baby, I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t know if you can hear me, or why I’m even doing this. All I know is that I’m scared. But you always made me feel better.” She sighed as though dreading what she planned to say. “I'm sorry, Luke. I should never have tried to replace you.” She laughed bitterly. “If it makes you feel any better, you're not an easy one to replace. But when you died, it left such a hole in my life. In me. I missed you, and I still miss you, but there's something I should have told you before, and that is that I don't regret you. Okay? I don't regret us. Even through the war and Kronos and you dying, I could never regret it. How could I? You taught me to stand up and fight. You gave me strength and happiness, and for that I owe you so much,” her voice break, “You were always the best part of me. I'll see you in Elysium.”

Before she could say anything else, someone knocked on her window. Tori rolled down the window and wiped the tears away. “Yeah?”

Bobby leaned down to talk to her. “Dean has an idea.”

“Is it a good one?”

A beat passed. “Dean has an idea.”

* * *

Tori leaned back against the side of the Impala while Dean called Chuck. Bobby had tried to explain what exactly Chuck was, but Tori had enough to do making sense of Greek religion. As long as he got the information they needed, she didn’t care.

Tori looked around. The apocalypse might be smacking the earth with disaster after disaster everywhere else, but here the sky was a fine blue with a few puffy clouds to keep it from getting too sunny.

 _Perfect day for an apocalypse_ , she thought before Apollo appeared beside her. She didn’t even blink this time. She just looked at him and said, “What?”

Apollo looked around. “Beautiful day for it, dontcha think?”

“Didn’t you already say goodbye? We’re done now.” She turned and started to walk away, but Apollo grabbed her hand.

“Tori… I’m not here about all this.” He gestured around them as though to indicate the apocalypse with a half-hearted hand wave. “It’s about Adam.”

Tori straightened, looking at her father. “Do you have new info?”

Apollo shook his head. “No, not that. Tori… Luke loved you. I don't doubt that he still loves you. And you love him. But Luke's gone now, and if I have anything to say about it, you won't be joining him for a long time. Maybe it’s time you moved on...”

Tori just sighed and shook her head, ignoring for the moment the fact that the apocalypse was nigh and her father wanted to talk about her love life. “Don’t try to talk to me about that, okay? Because I can’t. I can’t let go of him. And honestly? I’m okay with that. I’m okay with waiting as long as I have to to see him again.” Tori looked at him again, her eyes narrowing. He looked… nervous? Scared?

 _No_ , she realized, _He’s sad._ “Did you have a vision? Or a prophecy?”

Apollo shook his head wildly, which confirmed her beliefs. “What was it?”

He didn’t say anything, didn’t make a sound. His eyes were looking in her direction, but she could tell he couldn’t see her. “I can’t tell you. You’ll know when this is over.”

Tori scowled. “What exactly is the point of knowing the future if you can’t change it?”

Apollo shrugged haplessly. “I ask myself that all the time, Tori.”

* * *

Tori sat in the passenger seat of the Impala. “You know the plan?” Dean asked her.

“I’ve got it,” she said stonily, “Just keep Lucifer’s attention on you, and I’ll do what I can with Michael, okay?”

Dean didn’t respond. They kept driving. It felt like an eternity, and yet no time at all when they got to the cemetery. At the last moment, Dean looked over to radio and turned it on. “Rock of Ages” blared from the radio, filling the entire car. Tori laughed wildly, feeling more alive than she had in months. She missed this; the thrill of battle, of knowing you might die and fighting with everything you had.

Adam and Sam…Michael and Lucifer were standing in the cemetery, staring at the car as they rolled up. Once Dean parked, Tori got out casually, like she was going to the movies. Lucifer said something to Dean, but Tori ignored him. She approached Michael slowly, spreading her hands up placatingly. Michael watched her warily, but made no move to stop her. Tori cleared her throat. “Hey, Adam.”

“Adam’s gone,” he said stonily. His face was blank, like a statue. It reminded her of Kronos once he’d possessed Luke; the only emotions he’d ever felt were hatred, anger, and cruel amusement.

“I don’t believe that.” She remembered when Kronos possessed Luke. He had remembered her, known her, loved her. Maybe she couldn’t hope for so that much from Adam, but that was no reason not to try. “I want to help you, Adam. But you have to listen to me. I talked to Thanatos; to Death. He said that you can force Michael out.”

“He won’t do that.”

Tori shrugged. “Maybe not. But I’m going to talk to him anyway, so you can shut up.” Michael started to say something, but she cut him off. “Adam, I’m sorry. I used you to pretend a dead man was alive again, and I lied about it. You deserved better than that. Everyone does.”

“You’re really not convincing him, you know.”

“ _Shut up!_ ” She made herself calm down, closing her eyes and breathing slowly. “Adam, please.” Her voice cracked. “Don’t do this for me. I don’t deserve anything from you. Do it for yourself, for the life you wanted. Think of your mom, think of becoming a doctor, think of getting to know your brothers. Just…just think of yourself, Adam. Think of living.”

Michael stare at her. His expression was as still as it had been, but tears were gathering in his eyes. “Why?” He demanded, his voice rough and pleading. “You don’t.”

Tori flinched. “You’re right. I don’t. But you still can. Adam, you are young and good and kind and you deserve to live. Just…just live, Adam. Live.” Tears streamed down her face. “Please.”

Michael stared at her. Then his eyes snapped away. He stared down at himself. “No…” Then louder, “ _NO!_ ” His eyes slammed shut. “ _NO! GET OUT!_ ” His blue eyes turned to pure white light. The same type of light poured out of his mouth, and he _screamed_ , like he was being skinned alive, as the light was forced from him. Tori looked away, shielding her eyes with her arm.

A beat passed, then too, and the light faded away. Slowly, Tori looked back. Adam was kneeling in the grass, gasping for breath as he looked down at himself. Tori rushed to his side, helping him keep from falling forward. “Hey,” she said quietly, “It’s okay. I’m right here—”

“ _What_ ,” demanded Lucifer as he looked at Tori, “ _did you DO?!_ ”

Tori stared at him. “Ummm…”

She didn’t get to say anything else. Pain blazed in every inch of her body, blissfully ending when she exploded. Her flesh and blood erupted in a thousand different directions, and she was gone.

* * *

Dean stared at the place where his brother had fallen. If he looked anywhere else, he would see Bobby’s snapped neck, or Cas and Tori’s blood. Adam was still alive, though covered in blood, as Lucifer had planned to make him be Michael’s vessel again, but he was lying on the ground, intermittently groaning in pain after Lucifer tortured him for forcing Michael out in the first place. So instead, Dean just knelt where he was, too lost in his own grief and pain to help his brother.

A hand fell on his shoulder. He flinched and turned to see who was there, then froze. Cas stood before him, alive and not disintegrated. “Dean,” Cas said softly. His fingers brushed over Dean’s face, healing his pain and bruises, and cleaning the blood.

“Cas,” Dean gasped out. “How did…what happened?”

“God brought me back,” Cas said simply, “He brought me back better. There’s work to be done, but not for you.” Cas set his hand on Dean’s arm comfortingly and turned around. He walked over to Bobby’s body, and set his hand on the crooked, broken bones of his neck. They straightened and healed themselves, and Bobby came back to life with a gasp. “What happened? Did we…what?”

Cas didn’t say anything. Instead he walked over to what remained of Tori. “Lucifer’s gone. Sam forced him into the cage.” A beat passed. “But Lucifer killed Victoria.”

“Can’t you bring her back?” Adam asked, looking up at him from his position on the ground. Tori’s blood coated his face and chest. Dean doubted it was just blood.

For a moment, Cas looked sad. “I’m sorry; the ichor in her is something I can’t put back together. If she had been only quarter-god, and not half, maybe she could have survived without it, but…” He sighed. “There’s nothing I can do for her.”

“I’ll handle it.”

Everyone except Cas jumped back when Apollo appeared. He walked past the angel silently and stood still, looking at what remained of his daughter. Apollo closed his eyes and lifted his hands palm-up. His entire body glowed gold while bits of flesh and blood and cloth floated up and pieced themselves together. First there were her nerves and brain, then her marrow and bone. Her flesh knitted over the skeleton, along with her eyes, which slowly formed in their sockets. Finally there was her skin, hair, teeth, nails, clothes, jewelry, and weapons. It took no longer than a minute. When it was done, she floated in the air, looking for all the world as though she were asleep.

“Can you bring her back?” Adam asked quietly, the blood gone from him now.

Apollo shook his head. “I’m the god of a lot of things, but death isn’t one of them. This is the most I can do for her.” For a moment, it seemed like he might cry. He forced himself not to, blinking back tears and clearing his throat. “She died a hero’s death; she’ll…” His voice cracked. “She’ll go to Elysium.” A beat passed. “It’s what she wanted.” For a moment they silently stared at Tori’s body. “I’ll take her home. They’ll give her a proper funeral.”

“Can we…” Adam started, his voice rough, “Can we go too?”

Apollo shook his head. “It’s closed-off to humans.” After a moment, he added, “And they wouldn’t want you there anyway; you look too much like Luke, and some wounds never heal.”

Adam flinched, but said nothing. Apollo didn’t seem to notice, or maybe he just didn’t care. He left with Tori’s body, evaporating into light before disappearing.

* * *

**Epilogue**

Tori walked over the black ground. Her feet were bare, but she didn’t mind. She didn’t feel any pain; all she felt was a strange sort of peace. It was…blissful, almost.

She kept walking. She seemed to know where she was going instinctively. There had been a trial, but she hadn’t paid attention to it. She did not want to hear them rehash every horrible thing she’d ever done. Even now, she was not sure what the outcome had been. She remembered that she’d been put at the front of the line at someone’s insistence. Apart from that, she knew nothing. A guard had shown her the way to walk, but had not said where she was going.

She kept walking. Her weapons were gone, but her necklace was still there, the ring resting in the crook of her collarbones. A white dress brushed against her calves with every movement. It looked like hundreds of small white cherry blossoms had been stitched together to make a high-low dress. There were no straps or sleeves, leaving her arms bare. Her hair tickled her exposed back.

She could tell where she was going now, and walked faster. Soon she was jogging. There was light ahead of her, gold and white light that called to her like a siren.

Tori ran. She ran like her life depended on it, pushing past other spirits carelessly. They didn’t matter. Nothing did now, except getting to Elysium.

She ran. She ran and ran and ran, until her legs burned and her chest heaved. She ran and ran and froze, stuck to one place as though her legs had taken root in the black ground.

Luke stood at the gates, looking at her with wide eyes. For a moment, they just stayed there, staring at each other like they were the only ones, like there was nothing and no one else in the universe except for them.

Tori ran. She ran, and she knew he was running too, and suddenly she was in his arms, and she was clutching him like he might disappear if she didn’t. Tears ran down her cheeks, and she buried her face in his chest.

They stood like that for several minutes, wrapped up in each other’s arms, Luke’s chin on her head. Then Luke said, “Miss me?”

Tori laughed. “Not really, no.”

A beat passed, and Luke laughed too, pulling back just far enough to look down at her. “I missed you,” he said quietly. Tori’s lip trembled, but she didn’t care. She leaned up and kissed him, weaving her finger through his hair and holding him to her. It felt like...it was…

 _Like coming home_ , Tori realized. _I’m finally home._

**Author's Note:**

> Throw money at me: https://ko-fi.com/V7V6IXJK.


End file.
